Brussels, 25/03/2015 (Agence Europe) - At the start of the week, Algeria and Italy resumed their discussions on the Galsi gas pipeline project. The pipeline's relaunch had been announced by Algiers and Rome back in early February (see EUROPE 11273). The discussions took place as part of an economic mission conducted by Algeria's minister for industry and mining, Abdesselam Bouchouareb, who wants to strengthen the economic partnership as a prelude to deepening Algeria's economic links with the member states of the European Union.
Interest in relaunching Galsi is confirmed. It will be an important axis for the delivery of Algerian gas, and more distant sub-Saharan African gas, to Europe but the issue of its route still poses a problem. A new meeting has been agreed in April to discuss this in greater detail. In its negotiations, Sonatrach (the Algerian national company holding nearly half Galsi's capital) “will hold firmly to a line stating that Galsi has been designed and will be achieved to transit Algerian gas to Italy, via Sardinia, and to the rest of Europe, instead of any other alternative limiting the gas pipeline's itinerary”, Sonatrach told Algerian media.
Galsi is said to have been put on the back burner three times (in July 2012, December 2012 and at the end of May 2013) mainly because of reluctance from Sardinia's local authorities over environmental protection and heritage. Italy is reportedly in search of another route avoiding Sardinia.
The sought-after partnership between Algeria and Italy is based on the development of trade. In 2014, Italy was ranked as Algeria's second largest client among the EU member states and as Algeria's third largest supplier, with a volume of trade of over $13 billion. The balance, in surplus for Algeria, is dominated by gas exports via the Enrico Mattei gas pipeline linking Algeria to Italy via Tunisia, an Algerian source states. (Fathi B'Chir)