• Algeria's national oil and gas company, Sonatrach, dominates the country's hydrocarbon sector, owning roughly 80 percent of all hydrocarbon production. By law, Sonatrach is given majority ownership of oil and gas projects in Algeria.
• Militant groups operating in North Africa and the Sahel have presented security risks to oil and gas installations in the region. In January 2013, a militant group stormed Algeria's In Amenas gas facility, resulting in several causalities and a temporary suspension of gas production.
• Algeria had 12.2 billion barrels of proven oil reserves, as of January 1, 2013. All of the proven oil reserves are held onshore, since there has been limited offshore exploration. The government recently approved amendments to Algeria's hydrocarbon law that included fiscal incentives for foreign companies to invest in untapped exploration areas, particularly offshore and in areas believed to contain unconventional resources.
• The country produced 1.87 million bbl/d of total petroleum liquids in 2012, which includes crude oil, condensate, natural gas liquids, and refinery processing gain. The three largest oil fields, Hassi Messaoud, Ourhoud, and Hassi Berkine, contribute to about half of total crude oil production, which averaged 1.25 million bbl/d in 2012.
• The vast majority of Algerian crude oil exports, roughly 85 percent, are sent to Europe and North America. The United States is the single largest destination; however, U.S. imports of Algerian crude oil have substantially declined over the last five years.
• Algeria has five crude oil refineries and one condensate refinery, with a total nameplate capacity of 562,000 bbl/d. Although the refineries collectively often operate below capacity, the country typically produces a surplus of refined products because domestic consumption is lower than refinery output. The surplus is exported mostly to the United States, Europe, and Brazil.
• Algeria produced 2.9 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of dry natural gas in 2011. Production has steadily declined since 2005 as the country's large and mature fields are depleting. There are a host of new projects planned to come on line, but they have repeatedly been delayed, and some are dependent on the construction of new infrastructure.
• Algeria exports natural gas via pipelines and on tankers in the form of liquefied natural gas (LNG). It has three transcontinental export gas pipelines; two transport natural gas to Spain and one to Italy. It has three LNG complexes, two in Arzew and one in Skikda. Algeria was the first country in the world to export LNG in 1964.
• Most of Algerian pipeline gas and LNG exports are sent to countries in the European Union, making it the group's fourth largest natural gas supplier.
• Currently, more than 99 percent of Algeria's electricity generation comes from fossil-fuel sources. The Algerian government recently adopted a renewable energy program that aims to produce 40 percent of its domestically consumed electricity from renewable energy sources by 2030.

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Analysis Last Updated: May 20, 2013