Algeria’s Sonatrach and Italian oil major Eni on Thursday signed a memorandum of understanding to boost their exploration and production partnership in the key Berkine basin, the North African country’s state-owned firm said.
Algeria, an OPEC member and a major gas supplier to Europe, last year approved a new energy law aimed at improving its investment climate after a fall in output and exports.
The memorandum “aims to draw a roadmap that defines the steps to be followed in order to conclude one or more contracts ... under the new legal framework,” Sonatrach said in a statement.
The document was signed in Algiers by Sonatrach chief Toufik Hakkar and Eni CEO Claudio Descalzi who “affirmed their commitment to implementing an ambitious program to enhance exploration, development and production activities in the Berkine basin,” the statement said.
Hakkar and Descalzi discussed other issues including training in activities such as oil and gas, development, new energies and energy transition, it added.
Eni is the main foreign oil and gas player in Algeria, where it has been operating since 1981.
