Albares viajará a Argelia para garantizar el suministro de gas
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, plans to travel to Algeria this Thursday together with the chairmen of Naturgy, Francisco Reynés, and Enagás, Antoni Llardén, in order to guarantee gas supplies to Spain.
Algeria, Spain's main supplier of natural gas, is in a complex situation following the recent breakdown in relations between Morocco and Algeria. In this respect, the diplomatic ceasefire affects, among other things, the Maghreb Europe Gas Pipeline (GME) project, which simultaneously has consequences for the supply of gas to Spain.
Following the severance of relations, Algeria announced that gas will be supplied via the Medgaz gas pipeline, an infrastructure linking Algeria with Spain, specifically the pipeline starts at the Hassi R'mel field and ends at Perdigal beach in Almería. The infrastructure currently has an annual transport capacity of 8,000 million cubic metres.
In this line, the Medgaz pipeline has for the first time exceeded 100 million profit, as recorded, in the 2020 financial year. This mark has come in the midst of the global health crisis that has plagued virtually all economic sectors. The company claims that these profits are due to the fact that its revenues are secured by long-term standby contracts that it has signed with solvent companies.
In a parliamentary session, Albares announced that "the gas supply was guaranteed", after having engaged in various talks with both Algerian and Moroccan authorities. "The gas supply to Spain is not in danger because our Moroccan and Algerian friends want to work together in this area," he said.
On this issue, the minister stressed, "nobody has to worry". The Algerian gas issue coincides with an unprecedented moment in Spain in which the price of electricity has risen to 189.9 euros, setting an all-time record. In this context, September has been the most expensive month in this sector since records have been kept.
After remarking that Algeria's gas supply guarantees remain stable after assuring that "there is no problem", Albares framed the upcoming trip to Algeria as a pertinent opportunity to "accompany and involve Spanish companies with interests" in the Algerian country.
Thus, Albares will meet with his Algerian counterpart, Ramtane Lamamra, with whom he already met at the UN General Assembly in New York. In addition, the chairmen of Naturgy and Enagás will hold meetings with other contacts separately.
According to several experts, the replacement of GME by Medgaz transcends economic interests and reaches the political sphere, as it would be detrimental to Morocco's neighbour. According to the EFE news agency, Morocco could face gas supply problems if it does not find alternative fossil fuels in the short term, given that most of the gas it consumes comes from Algeria.