Since Monday, November 1, 2021, Algeria no longer supplies Spain with gas via the Maghreb-Europe gas pipeline (GME) which crosses Morocco and whose contract, which expired the day before, was not renewed.
In the air for several weeks, the decision was officially announced on the evening of October 31 by the Presidency of the Republic. The same source linked him directly to Morocco’s “aggressive actions” against Algeria. The two countries have not maintained diplomatic relations since August 24.
In Spain, concerns are expressed for the continuity of the country’s gas supply, especially in a period marked by gas pressures and a substantial rise in prices. But at no time was Algeria’s reliability as a supplier questioned.
Even before the Algerian decision was endorsed, the issue was at the center of discussions between officials of the two countries.
In August, the Minister of Energy and Mines, Mohamed Arkab, received the Spanish Ambassador in Algiers, to whom he assured that Algeria will keep all of its commitments. The Alternative announced was to build the capacity of the other gas pipeline that directly links the two countries without going through Morocco, the Medgaz.
The same guarantees were reiterated to the Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares Bueno, during his visit to Algiers on September 30, during which he notably met the President of the Republic, Abdelmadjid Tebboune. Before leaving the Algerian capital, the Spanish foreign minister said he was “reassured”.
It was especially in Morocco, which was the first to harbor doubts about the renewal of the GME gas pipeline contract, that voices tried to cast doubt on Algeria’s reliability.
“We now know that we cannot rely on an unreliable partner, even more so when it comes to matters of a strategic nature,” wrote for example 360.ma, citing a source familiar with the matter.
“Algeria has built its reliability over the long term, it has extensive experience in the field, it was a pioneer in LNG and gas pipelines. It has nothing more to demonstrate, “said economist Mustapha Mékidèche, in a statement to TSA on Tuesday, November 2.
“Algeria remains a decisive and determined player in supplying Europe. There may be commercial differences, but technically, it is under control, “he continues, stressing that Morocco does not have to talk about reliability. “It’s a transit country, that’s for Spain to judge,” he adds, recalling that most of the gas passing through the GME was destined for the Iberian Peninsula.
An important supplier from Spain
For Spain, gas is of great importance in its energy system, contributing up to a third of electricity production and also serving for heating and industry. Most notably, almost half (46%) of the gas consumed in the country comes from Algeria.
But Algeria’s decision is not overly worrying. Enagas, which operates the gas network in Spain, has denied all rumors of a shortage. “There are no objective signs of a gas shortage situation in the coming months,” she said in a statement.
Spanish experts also rule out the possibility of a shortage this winter because of the Algerian decision. “Experts who spoke to El Pais strongly reject fears of power outages this winter,” writes the famous Spanish newspaper. “The alternative is to negotiate with more ships to bring the same gas from Algeria, or America, the Middle East or Northern Europe. But that shouldn’t be a problem: 60% of the gas we consume comes to us via this route, so hiring more ships is something that is done continuously, ”said Pedro Mielgo, former president of the Spanish national network. , Red Eléctrica de España (REE).
In terms of figures, GME has a capacity of over 13 billion cubic meters per year, compared to 8.5 billion for Medgaz. The planned works will increase the capacity of the latter, before winter, to a maximum of 10 billion M3.
“This means that there will always be a shortfall of 4000 bcm that Spain will have to cover by importing natural gas by sea,” calculates El Païs. This could in the worst case lead to additional costs because of the strong pressure on LNG carriers during this precise period.
“No reason to fall into alarmism”
The concerns about a possible power failure are “a rumor of people who think that the world will end”, believes Francisco Valverde, of the consulting firm Menta Energía. “It is true that having a pipeline instead of two reduces the flexibility to count on more natural gas in the higher demands. But I do not see anywhere the risk of breakdowns or gas supplies in Spain. There is no reason to fall into alarmism: all the precautions have been taken, “he says, cited by the same newspaper.
Abdelmadjid Attar, expert et ancien ministre algérien de l’Energie, est encore plus rassurant, indiquant qu’il n’y a pas de raison de douter des assurances des autorités algériennes.
Abdelmadjid Attar, an expert and former Algerian Minister of Energy, is even more reassuring, indicating that there is no reason to doubt the insurance of the Algerian authorities. “The MedGAZ can take charge of all deliveries through the planned capacity building at $ 10.5 billion per year, but offsetting the differential through LNG deliveries,” he said on Tuesday in an interview at the official agency The GME had a capacity of about 13 billion cubic meters (M3) a year, but in recent years, it has been operated with an annual volume that did not exceed 4 to 6 billion m3 / year, while Medgaz transported 8.5 billion m3.
Translated from : https://www.tsa-algerie.com/livraison-de-gaz-lalgerie-a-bati-sa-fiabilite-sur-le-long-terme/
