ROME, Italy: This week, the leaders of Italy, France and the EU signed agreements with their counterparts in Algeria, Azerbaijan and the United Arab Emirates to buy natural gas, due to fears of a disruption in Russian supplies.
Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi visited Algeria’s capital, Algiers, where President Abdelmadjid Tebboune said a $4 billion deal would be signed this week to supply “a significant amount of gas.”
“Algeria is a very important partner for Italy, in the energy sector, in the industrial and business areas, in the fight against crime and in the search for peace and stability in the Mediterranean,” Draghi said, according to the Associated Press news agency. .
Also this week, France and the United Arab Emirates signed an energy cooperation agreement, in which the Gulf country supplies more oil and natural gas.
After President Emmanuel Macron hosted Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Paris, no details about the deal were released by the French finance minister.
In addition, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen was in Azerbaijan this week to finalize a gas supply agreement with President Ilham Aliyev aimed at doubling Azerbaijan’s gas imports within half a decade.
“This is good news for our gas supplies this winter and beyond,” von der Leyen said.
Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and Moscow’s restrictions on natural gas flows to a dozen EU countries, which caused soaring energy prices, inflation and the possibility of recession, Europe has been looking for alternative energy sources.
In Algeria, several Italian ministers signed a series of memoranda of understanding, including in the energy sector.
Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi said such agreements are “fundamental for the EU, as well as for Italy, which has reached out to other energy-producing nations to secure alternative sources, including Azerbaijan, Qatar, Congo, Angola and Mozambique,” as quoted. by the Associated Press.
According to the Algerian energy giant Sonatrach, before the Ukraine war, Russia supplied Italy with about 29 billion cubic meters of gas annually, compared to about 23 billion from Algeria. This year, Algeria has delivered an additional 13.9 billion cubic meters to Italy via the Trans-Mediterranean pipeline, an increase of 113 percent compared to forecasts.
Also this week, Algeria announced that it will increase supply by 4 billion cubic feet in the coming months.