Algeria’s gas exports hit a 25-year low in 2020, falling 6% on the year to 38.5bcm according to MEES estimates (see chart 1). Save for a hefty bump in 2016, as new projects increased output, exports have been on a clear downward trend, falling 40% from an all-time-high of 64.2bcm in 2005.

When you’re a country as reliant on hydrocarbon revenue as Algeria, such numbers matter. For 2019, the most recent comprehensive data, sales of oil and gas accounted for a whopping 93% of Algeria’s export earnings (MEES, 21 February 2020). And, if the share was lower for 2020, it’s only because hydrocarbons earnings collapsed by more than those for Algeria’s threadbare other exports. (CONTINUED - 1536 WORDS)