Algiers — Six months after the deadly terror attack on the Tiguentourine gas complex left doubt hanging over the future of foreign oil companies in Algeria, a deal concluded Sunday (July 7th) in Algiers put those concerns to rest.

An energy partnership between Algeria and the European Union, which had been under discussion for five years, was finally adopted. Algerian Prime Minister Abdelmalek Sellal and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso signed the Memorandum of Understanding in Algiers.

The MoU "establishes a framework for co-operation, which covers... oil and gas, renewable energy, energy efficiency, legal and regulatory reform, progressive energy markets, infrastructure development and technology transfer", Barroso said.

But Algeria's agreement with the European Union does more than just set up a framework for future ties, economist Issam Akram suggested.

"The timing is important in more ways than one," he argued, because "the deal was signed just as press reports claimed that certain European oil companies intend to pull out of Algeria or cut their investment in this country in the wake of the In Amenas attack."

Algeria, which is one of the biggest suppliers of oil and gas to Europe, is determined to maintain this position.

"Algeria has been working to bring a permanent and strategic dimension to its relationship with the EU, a dimension made necessary by its geographic proximity [and] economic factors," Sellal said at the signing ceremony.

According to Barroso, "energy is a priority sector for the Euro-Mediterranean partnership, because it is vital in order to build a shared zone of prosperity and stability". Algeria, he said, is viewed as a "key partner at both the bilateral and regional levels".

"It is in the strategic interest of both parties to develop dialogue and co-operation in relation to energy, whether in the oil and gas sector or the renewable energy sector," he added.

In December, a ministerial meeting on renewable energies and solar energy will be held in Brussels with "the aim of adopting a solar plan for the whole of the Mediterranean, and Algeria will certainly have a role to play in that", Barroso noted.

"The strategic energy partnership deal confirms that Algeria is still a favoured supplier for Europe," economist Adel Mostafaoui told Magharebia.

"Through this agreement, European countries expressed unwavering support for the Algerian government in its struggle against terrorism," he added.