Spain has decided to no longer depend on Algerian gas, after Algeria’s unilateral closure of the Maghreb Europe (GME) gas pipeline and supply difficulties via alternative solutions.
Last February, the United States consolidated its position as the main exporter of natural gas to Spain. For the second consecutive month, purchases of this raw material in the United States exceeded those of Algeria, which was the main supplier until the end of last year.
These data were published by the statistical bulletin of Enagás, the manager of the Spanish gas system, which indicates that last February Spain bought 12,472 gigawatt hours (GWh) of natural gas in the United States, against 8,801 to Algeria.
Thus, the weight of natural gas of American origin represented 32.9% of total Spanish imports, while Algeria came in second place with 23.2%.
With regard to imports, all of the gas from the United States arrived in Spain by LNG carriers in the form of liquefied natural gas (LNG), while all of the gas from Algeria was transported via the gas pipeline Medgaz which has recurring operating faults.
Since the closure of the GME, the Spanish authorities have reported recurring disruptions in the supply chain via the replacement solutions offered by Algiers.
According to the Russian federal news agency FAN, Algeria’s closure of the Maghreb-Europe (GME) gas pipeline has caused it to inflict heavy financial losses. The same source clarifies that Algeria has faced technical problems related to its plans to expand the capacity of the Medgaz gas pipeline, which has caused the cost of transport to rise as demand increases and the energy crisis worsens in Spain and throughout Europe.
The Russian agency also reports that Spain accuses Algeria of not having respected its promise to supply it with gas in sufficient quantities in accordance with the commitments made.
MAP