The country with the world’s tenth-largest proven reserves of natural gas and the world’s sixth-largest gas exporter, Algeria, will record a fall of 4.7% of its gas exports for 2020.

The Minister of Energy, Abdelmadjid Attar, said the exports are to fall by around 4.7% or 41 billion m 3 in 2020 against 43 billion m 3 in 2019. The fall will affect the country’s ability to support the growing local demand for gas.

The fall is attributed to the drop in the demand for gas in Europe and the competition in the supply of gas by Americans.

The country’s revenues for oil and gas were $33 billion in 2019 compared to the forecast of $23 billion that was made for 2020. The deficit is a blow for the North African because it derives 95% of its foreign exchange earnings from oil and gas sales.

The production of gas in Algeria is to reach 126 billion m 3 in 2020 as against 127 billion m 3 in 2019. The increase in the national gas consumption which has led to higher demand, the arrival of mature deposits and the lack of investments in the oil sector (although Algeria adopted a law last year to attract investors to the oil and gas industry) has contributed to the drop in production.