Sonatrach led by new director

This is reported by the Algerian information agency Algeria Press Service (APS). Meanwhile, the Algerian mass media is reporting that Abdelaziz Buteflika has made at least 20 personnel changes in the company management.

The delegation of authority from Said Sahnoun, who had been temporarily performing the responsibilities of the head of the corporation, took place on 25 May in the presence of the new Algerian Energy Minister Salah Khebri, appointed to his post on 14 May.

It is well known that Sonatrach’s new executive director is the son of the prominent revolutionary activist and participant in the war for Algeria’s independence, the country’s former Minister of Labour Mohamed Said Mazouzi, who occupied that post in the 1970s, and that he has a doctorate in an oil and gas related field. Since 2008, Amine Mazouzi has been working as the director of strategy, planning, and reporting, stated the agency.

The former acting chairman of the state corporation Said Sahnoun had held the position since June 2014. He was the fifth company head in the past five years.

The changes at Sonatrach were part of a large-scale reshuffle in the government of the Algerian Republic initiated by the country’s president Abdelaziz Buteflika. On 14 May, he made a number of personnel appointments, during which eight heads of key ministries were replaced in the cabinet of ministers.

Amid falling oil prices, Algeria, one of the largest oil and gas producers in North Africa, is facing a sharp decline in state revenues, based largely on the export of energy resources.

According to APS citing the figures from reference-reporting materials from the country's customs service, in the first quarter of 2015 alone, state revenues from the sale of hydrocarbons fell more than 40%.

One of the main tasks that Algerian Prime Minister Abdelmalek Sellal set before the new head of Sonatrach at the extended session of energy sector leaders on 25 May is to increase investments in the exploration and development of new hydrocarbon deposits.

Algeria is the leading producer of natural gas and one of the three major oil producers in Africa.

Algeria ranks second after Nigeria (5.15 trillion cubic metres) in terms of proven natural gas reserves (approx. 4.5 trillion cubic metres). The country’s main hydrocarbon reserves are concentrated in its central and eastern parts.

Since 2009 and in alliance with Sonatrach (51%), Gazprom International (operator, 49%) has been implementing a project on the El Assel licensed area, located in the Berkine Basin 150 kilometres to the southeast of the country’s oil production center, Hassi-Messaoud. Three fields have been opened during the period of joint operations.