Sonatrach Becomes Majority Shareholder in Medgaz
Algerian state-run Sonatrach has become the majority shareholder in Medgaz pipeline after acquiring a 19.10% stake held by Spain’s Cepsa Holding, it said on May 30 without disclosing the financial details.
The company now owns 51% of Medgaz, which manages and operates the offshore gas pipeline which carries natural gas from Algeria to Spain. Naturgy Energy Group holds the remaining 49% in the pipeline.
Sonatrach said the deal “strengthens its position as a major and reliable supplier of Algerian gas to importing customers to Europe, in particular, the Iberian Peninsula through the Medgaz gas pipeline.”
The 210-km pipeline has an annual transport capacity of 8.2bn m3, which will be increased during the first quarter of 2021 to 10.2bn m3 by adding a fourth turbo-compressor at the Beni-Saf compression station in Algeria, Sonatrach said.