For more than thirty years, Natural Gas plays an ever increasing role between Europe and the Maghreb.
Maghrebian Natural gas (essentially Algerian) now ensures 15% of the European gas consumption. This article focuses on the influence of the Euro-Maghrebian partnership in strengthening energy policy and examines the energy and power markets from global and regional perspectives.
In the Maghreb, electricity demand in the horizon 2010 will increase by 150% and will require the installation of new power export capacities (17000 MW) and very important capital expenditure. Algeria in its part is developing an ambitious power plant construction program. The paper illustrates how the liberalisation of gas and electricity markets is fundamentally changing the competitive environment for the gas and electricity market.
Natural Gas, that is required to contribute to an important part of the new electricity production capacities can be the common denominator for a regional approach.
Two different alternatives can be considered. – Produce electricity in the proximity of the gas field and transport it to the consumption point. – Transport Natural Gas and produce electricity near the consumption zone in each country.
The choice of one of the alternatives depends on numerous factors, but the difference of transportation costs of electricity and Natural Gas is the most determining.
Because the electricity market is developing strongly, and for economic and environmental reasons the use of Natural Gas in the production of electricity is unavoidable. Thus having a competitive gas market is necessary for a proper functioning of the electricity market.
Algeria has always played a privileged role on the worldwide energy scene. The example of natural gas, whose expansion was mainly due to its contribution is, in this way, quite eloquent1. With the start-up of the Arzew GL4Z plant in 1964, Algeria became the world's first LNG producer. This plant is still providing the world Market.
Algeria is reinforced in his natural gas strategy by the interaction created between natural gas and electricity, due essentially to a certain worldwide awareness, and the focus of its ecological interest.
Compared to the other fossil energy, natural gas is considered as the least polluting. The nuclear fear is an other argument of great size. The "Tchernobyl drama" has always been here to recall it to the whole Humanity.
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The statistics2 show clearly that the fastest evolution in terms of natural gas consumption comes from the electricity generation. The great technological breakthrough of the cogeneration is reinforcin