It has taken almost 10 years from when development was first approved for Algeria to complete the 9.2bcm/y ‘Phase-1’ of its Southwest Gas Project (SWGP). Without the chronic delays, the new projects could have seen Algeria easily surpass the 100bcm/y mark. This wasn’t to be. Instead, 2016’s 94.8bcm looks to have been the high-water mark.

By the time Algeria hit that record, none of the three projects that comprise SWGP had come online. The Repsol-led 2.9bcm/y Reggane Nord started-up in late 2017 and Total’s 1.8bcm/y Timimoun tight-gas project in early 2018. The largest element, the 4.5bcm/y Neptune Energy-operated Touat project, was on the cusp of start-up last week (MEES, 30 August): though the firm evidently jumped the gun in saying on 29 August that start-up was coming “imminently, today or potentially tomorrow.” (CONTINUED - 1371 WORDS)