THE
NORTH AFRICA JOURNAL
151st. Issue
Week ending July 12, 2004
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Oil
and Gas: Libya Has Third Largest Reserve of Gas in Africa, Seeks
to Double Production
Libya
has some 1,325 billion cubic meters (46,700 billion cubic feet)
of proven gas reserves, ranking it 21st in the world and the third
biggest source of gas in Africa. It follows Algeria with 4,523 billion
cubic meters and Nigeria with 3,610 billion. More than 45% of Libya’s
gas represent liquefied petroleum gas. When including the Bourri
and Ghadames fields, its gas reserves are estimated to be between
50,000 and 70,000 billion cubic feet. With these resources, the
development of the gas industry is now a priority for the Libyans.
Infrastructure
$5.5 Billion for Infrastructure Projects in Morocco
The ongoing infrastructure projects in Morocco are estimated to cost some MAD 50 billion, or the equivalent of $5.5 billion. This amount is at the lower end of the range of the real investment being committed in the whole infrastructure sector because only nine sectors are counted in this pool. But for the economy the size of Morocco, this value illustrates how dynamic and important the infrastructure sector has been for the past two years and likely to remain in the foreseeable future.
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Ambitious Orascom
From Two Million GSM Subscribers in Algeria to a $30 Million Mediterranean Fiber Optic Cable and a Cement Plant in M’Sila
The Egyptian company Orascom is making inroads in Algeria. Its GSM mobile phone unit there know as Orascom Telecom Algerie (OTA) celebrated last week its 2 millionth subscriber only after two years of operation. The celebration saw the participation of Naguib Sawiris, the CEO of Orascom Telecom Holding, who came from Egypt for this purpose. The celebration also included major Egyptian musicians and artists. In the mobile telephony space the company has invested $1.6 billion developing its infrastructure and market and is forecasting sales to reach $600 million this year. But Orascom has also invested on a second production line in the M’sila cement plant and so it has committed a total of $500 million there.
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Markets
Exploring the Moroccan Printer Market
The Moroccan printer market is turning our to be highly competitive, although Hewlett Packard (HP) appears to be the leader and the most recognized brand there. Behind HP, a number of players, including importers, are trying to position themselves to serve an emerging market in transition, and their marketing campaigns are often aggressive and daring. What is at stake is a market that is quickly opening up and which will also enables vendors to penetrate other North African markets not only for selling printers, but more importantly for selling the consumables that go with the printers.
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Trade and Banking
Moroccan Banks Allowed to Offer Commodity Trading Services to Importers
Moroccan banks are introducing new services to commodity buyers and importers. They are approaching potential clients in an effort to convince them that only banks can help them navigate the rough waters of fluctuating commodity prices and currency movements. By hiring banks such as Attijariwafa, commodity buyers are told they will be better protected against the risks of fluctuation in the market. For most, this is a welcomed service, in particular for traders involved in the cereal market, which has not been stable in the past months.
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Seawater Desalination
Algeria Seeks Contractors to Build and Operate Two Seawater Desalination Plants in the West of the Country
The Algerian Energy Company (AEC) is looking for contractors to build and operate two seawater desalination plants in western Algeria. The first will be located in the city of Mostaganem with a capacity of producing 100,000 cubic meters of clean water per day and the second will be further west toward the Moroccan board in the city of Tlemcen with a 50,000 cubic meter capacity.
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Trends
Embryonic Call Center Market in Algeria
The concept of call centers is new to the Algerian market and businesses are likely to adopt them only in the long term as a few "pioneers" are introducing them today. For now, the focus thus far has been on providing solution and services to the few telecom operators active in Algeria, starting with Orascom Algerie, which hired Nortel, Algerie Telecom which is currently working with France Telecom's Sofrecom, and Wataniya which has yet to hire a solution provider for its own call center.
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Infrastructure
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