Silicone Oil in Algeria- Algeria's Industrial Development & Silicone Oil

Cited from: https://pixabay.com/photos/globe-algeria-niger-mali-africa-1029213/

Cover Photo cited from: https://pixabay.com/photos/desert-landscapes-sahara-4933581/

Algeria is located in northwest Africa, bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Tunisia and Libya to the east, Morocco to the west, and Mali, Niger, Mauritania, and Western Sahara to the south and southwest. With a land area of 2.38 million square kilometers and a coastline of approximately 1200 kilometers, it is currently the largest country in Africa in terms of land area.

The terrain of Algeria is divided into three parts: the coastal plains and hills along the Mediterranean coast, the central plateau, and the southern Sahara Desert. The desert covers an area of over 2 million square kilometers, accounting for approximately 85% of the total land area. Algeria belongs to the East 1 time zone, which is 7 hours later than Beijing time and does not have daylight saving time

Algeria has a vast territory, but most of the area is covered by deserts, forests, and fine stem coniferous vegetation. The cultivated area is about 8 million hectares, and freshwater resources are scarce. Fishery resources are relatively abundant, with an ocean area of approximately 95000 square kilometers available for fishing and a fish reserve of 500000 tons. There are abundant reserves of oil, natural gas, and shale gas, with proven oil reserves of approximately 1.34 billion tons, accounting for 1% of the world's total reserves, ranking 15th in the world and 3rd in Africa. It belongs to the Sahara light oil category and has a relatively high oil quality. In addition, two-thirds of Algeria's territory is not fully explored or unexplored; The proven recoverable reserves of natural gas are 2.37 trillion cubic meters, accounting for 2.37% of the world's total reserves and ranking 10th in the world; The recoverable shale gas resources are expected to reach 20 trillion cubic meters, ranking third in the world. There are over 30 types of mineral resources, with the main proven reserves being 4 billion tons of iron ore, an estimated 150 million tons of lead zinc ore, 50000 tons of uranium ore, 173.6 tons of gold, and 2 billion tons of phosphate.

The northern coastal areas of Algeria have a Mediterranean style climate, with an annual average temperature of about 17 ℃. The lowest temperature in January is about 5 ℃, and the highest temperature in August is about 38 ℃; The Algerian plateau region has a continental climate, with dry and less rain, cold winter and hot summer. The lowest temperature in January is below 0 ℃, and snow falls in the mountainous areas; The Sahara region has a tropical desert climate, with a maximum temperature of 55 ℃ from May to September and a large temperature difference between day and night; Desert oases, plateaus, and salt lake areas in deserts have their own microclimates. November to March of the following year is the rainy season, and June to September is the dry season. The annual rainfall in coastal areas ranges from 400 to 1000 millimeters.

According to the latest statistics from the Algerian National Bureau of Statistics, as of January 1, 2019, the total population of Algeria is approximately 43 million. In 2018, the working age population of Algeria aged 15-59 was approximately 2.058 million, accounting for 60.6% of the total population, a decrease of 0.5 percentage points compared to 2017. There are approximately 4 million overseas Chinese, of which 2 million are in France. The population of Algeria is mainly concentrated in coastal areas, which account for less than 4.7% of the national territory, with a population density of 250 people per square kilometer. 70% of the population lives in cities and surrounding areas.

According to incomplete statistics, as of the beginning of 2020, there were approximately 20-30000 Algerian overseas Chinese, most of whom were migrant workers, mainly concentrated in coastal cities such as Algiers, Oran, Annaba, etc.

Industries in Algeria

The hydrocarbon industry: It is a pillar industry in Algeria, with an output value accounting for 30% of the country's gross domestic product, tax revenue accounting for two-thirds of the country's fiscal revenue, and exports accounting for over 90% of the country's total exports. In 2020, Algeria's energy exports amounted to $21.541 billion, a decrease of 35.2% compared to $33.243 billion in 2019.

Algeria has 5 refineries, 4 liquefied natural gas plants, 2 liquefied petroleum gas separation plants, and 2 enol petrochemical plants, with a total refining capacity of approximately 22 million tons per year. To meet Algeria's domestic energy consumption needs, the government plans to build 6 new refineries and develop related petrochemical industries in the vicinity of the newly built refineries. The Algerian National Petroleum and Natural Gas Company announced a 6-year investment plan for the period 2015-2021 at the end of 2016, with an investment scale of $63 billion for oil exploration and development. If the Afghan National Oil and Gas Company implements this investment plan, it is expected to ensure relatively stable oil production in Afghanistan.

Algeria's domestic energy consumption accounts for 30% of its total energy production, with the remaining 70% being used for exports. Among them, natural gas exports rank third in the world, second only to Russia and Canada, and crude oil exports rank 12th in the world. In addition, Algeria exports approximately 20 million tons of liquefied natural gas annually, making it the fourth largest exporter of liquefied natural gas in the world, after Indonesia, Malaysia, and Qatar. It mainly exports to Western Europe, especially France and Spain. 30% of Europe's energy comes from Algeria, and from 2015 to 2017, Europe's energy dependence on Algeria reached 60%.

SONATRACH, established in 1963, is the largest enterprise in Algeria, the 12th largest oil company in the world, the 4th largest natural gas export company, and the 2nd largest liquefied petroleum gas export company, ranking first among the top 500 in Africa. The company specializes in oil and gas exploration and extraction, with a registered capital of $6 billion.

Algeria has 20 trillion cubic meters of shale gas reserves, ranking third in the world, only behind China and Argentina. Shale gas is mainly distributed in Mouydir, Ahnet, Berkine Ghadames, Timimoun, Regane, and Tindouf basins. In the next 20 years, Sonatrach Oil Company of Algeria will invest 70 billion US dollars in shale gas mining, build 200 mines, achieve daily production of 60 million cubic meters/day, annual production of 20 billion cubic meters, and create 50000 direct and indirect employment opportunities.