Closer energy co-operation Spain - Algeria

June 25, 1997 Spain currently imports 8 billion cubic meters of natural gas per year (60 % of its consumption) from Algeria and is planning to double the figure. The increased gas imports were discussed earlier this month in Spain by top energy sector officials from both countries.
The possibility of constructing a second gas pipeline to transport the increased imports is also being considered.It was said that Algerian officials would be ready to carry out such a project, but would like to see the Spanish gas company, Gas Natural, invest at the well, while the Algerian side would be involved in the marketing in Spain, under terms similar to those agreed with British Petroleum in the In Salah gas project. If the project is carried out, it would link the northern Algerian city of Mostaganem to Cartagena, or Almeira, in Spain.
Algerian, which has already carried out the project's feasibility studies, estimates the cost of the project at around $ 800 million, less than half that of the Maghreb-Europe gas pipeline.
A newspaper reported that bilateral co-operation could be extended to the electricity sector. The Algerian state electricity and gas company, Sonelgaz, has proposed delivering electricity to the Spanish partners, which would be produced in Mostaganem if Gas Natural would undertake the necessary investments.
Such a scheme would be profitable for Spain because "of the very low production cost in Algeria. The electricity would be conveyed through a submarine lead line