Italy and Spain are fighting over Algerian gas

Under the above title, Sergei Manokov wrote, in "Expert Ru", about the intensification of competition for Algerian gas against the background of Europe's abandonment of Russian gas.

The article stated: It is the first example of how European countries are ready to abandon Russian gas and search for an alternative to it, and how these searches are reflected on the unity of Europe.

Italian and Spanish diplomats met to discuss Algerian gas. Mario Draghi agreed, on April 11, in Algiers, to increase large supplies of gas (22.5 billion cubic meters) and another 9 billion cubic meters, in 2023-2024, which represents 12% of the country's gas needs.

In Madrid, news of the agreement aroused great concern. The Spaniards fear that they will have serious problems in securing "blue fuel". The Spanish and Algerians have long been negotiating to supply Spain with Algerian gas, but they cannot agree on a price. Spain fears that the agreement with Italy sharply strengthens Algeria's position in these negotiations and allows it to dictate its terms. In addition, Algeria may, not without cause for Madrid's concern, face logistical problems with regard to gas supplies to the Iberian Peninsula.

Spanish and Italian diplomats announced their countries' positions and agreed to a new meeting at the end of April. The two countries have long received Algerian gas via pipelines connecting them to Algeria. Previously, there was enough Algerian gas for everyone, but now, due to the firm intention of Europe to abandon Russian gas and reduce gas production in Algeria itself, big problems have arisen.

The fears of the Spaniards are justified, because the decline exceeded 40%. This means that Algerian gas is now likely to become the subject of intense competition between European countries in an attempt to reduce dependence on Russian gas.

The article expresses only the opinion of the newspaper or the writer