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Rabat – Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs Jose Manuel Albares is scheduled to travel to Algeria on Thursday, September 30, to discuss the future of the Europe Maghreb Gas Pipeline with Algerian authorities.
Spanish news outlet Europa Press said the visit aims at securing gas supply for Madrid.
The trip comes a month before the expiration date of the Maghreb Europe gas pipeline. The contract between Spain, Algeria, and Morocco is set to expire on October 31.
The Maghreb-Europe gas pipeline supplies Spain and Portugal with gas from Algeria, which passes through Morocco.
The pipeline offers Spain 30% of the natural gas consumed in the European country, which is transported from Morocco
Observers believe that Algeria is unlikely to agree to a contract extension amid the diplomatic crisis with Morocco.
On August 24, Algeria decided to sever diplomatic relations with Morocco and accused it of causing the wildfires in the Kabylia region. A few days later, the Algerian government decided to close its airspace with Morocco.
The Algerian government continues to attack Morocco, interfering in its domestic affairs with the aim of undermining its territorial integrity.
The crisis between the two countries has become a source of concern for Spain, which is seeking to ensure gas supplies from Algeria to Morocco.
Although Spain receives gas directly from Algeria through a second, submarine gas pipeline called Medgaz, Madrid is aiming to ensure adequate supplies in case of a disruption.
In August, Albaress expressed hope to see the Europe Maghreb pipeline operational despite the crisis between Morocco and Algeria.
He said Algeria will continue to supply gas to Spain despite the rupture in relations between the two nations.
He added that he held talks with “Algerian and Moroccan friends,” emphasizing that the “gas supply to Spain is not in danger because our Moroccan and Algerian friends want to work together in this area.”
He added that “no one has to worry.”
However, officials from Sontrach, Algeria’s controlled natural gas company, suggested that Morocco “would likely no longer be part of the Europe-Maghreb pipeline.”
The officials from the Algerian gas company claimed that technical and financial challenges will be the reason for bypassing Morocco, and directly export gas to Spain.
Amid Sonatrachs claims, Morocco’s National Office of Hydrocarbons and Minerals (ONHYM) released a statement reaffirming commitment to renewing the agreement amid intense escalation.
ONHYM Director-General, Amina Benkhadra, argued Morocco was willing to “preserve the Maghreb-European gas pipeline.”
Benkhadra made the comments in response to media speculations that Morocco would likely withdraw from the regional project due to political disagreements with both Algeria and Spain.
