Algerian interim president Abdelkader Bensalah
IOCs retain Algerian caution
Sceptical Western investors adopt wait-and-see attitude even after Algeria’s interim government agreed a draft hydrocarbons law
Algeria is set to move away from an onerous tax regime that has seen international oil companies (IOCs) stay away in recent years, under a draft law announced in October by interim president Abdelkader Bensalah, who replaced the ousted Abdelaziz Bouteflika in May after weeks of riots. But it remains to seen whether it will be enough to fire potential investors’ enthusiasm. Officials say the law is a return to the IOC-friendly regulatory framework of the 1980s and 1990s, which resulted in rapid growth in oil and gas output. That framework was ditched in 2005, but tighter rules deterred IOCs and saw exploration stagnate. Auctions for exploration licenses flopped in 2010 and 2014, with only si
Also in this section
9 April 2026
The April 2026 issue of Petroleum Economist is out now!
9 April 2026
Offshore operators are working through an FID backlog as the rig market consolidates, helped by improving project economics and a renewed security drive
2 April 2026
Alongside a rapid continued build-out of renewables, China’s latest five-year plan stresses the value of domestic hydrocarbon production for energy security and calls for increased Russian gas imports
2 April 2026
The government is taking important steps to revive domestic production, lift investment and benefit from the geopolitical crisis even if more needs to be done in the longer term
