Since January, Sonatrach, Algeria’s state-owned oil company, has discovered eight new oil and gas fields, the energy minister announced.
In an interview on Algerian television yesterday, Minister Mohamed Arkab said the “important” new discoveries were made by Sonatrach alone in completely new sites, mainly in the states of Bechar, Ain Salah, Illizi, Djanet, and Ouargla.
He pointed out that the discoveries “will provide a significant addition to the proven national reserves of hydrocarbons, especially natural gas.”
He didn’t disclose the estimated reserves in the new fields.
After the American ExxonMobil signed, last Thursday, a memorandum of understanding with Sonatrach to develop two gas fields, Arkab revealed that the American giant, Chevron, will also sign a deal with the state-owned company within a few days to develop a huge hydrocarbon reservoir.
Sonatrach’s 2023 data shows that Algeria produced approximately 137 billion cubic meters of natural gas.
