Business
Environment
Business
Creation in Morocco
Up
until recently data on business creation in Morocco was not traditionally
centralized, and therefore trends on business creation and company
closings could not be followed properly. But now the function of
business creation monitoring has been officially assigned to the
labor division at the Ministry of Labor. The division issued its
first set of data, which aims at providing useful insights on how
companies are established and how they die.
Media
A
North African Television in the Offing
Could
North Africans have their own regional television? Although I am
not sure I would wager a bet on such initiative in the short term
given that politicians in all countries of the region will most
likely erect insurmountable barriers to it, a few individuals in
North Africa are daring to take a shot at it, and these individuals
are apparently the right ones.An initiative aimed at creating a
satellite-based television station for the entire region was revealed
in the desert town of El Oued last week by entrepreneur millionaire
Djilali Mehri, the man who introduced Pepsi-Co to the Algerian market.
The idea is currently at the planning stage with a technical team
analyzing its feasibility. The team is composed of experts and entrepreneurs
from Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia and Mauritania.
Industry
Sonatrach
to Establish a Lubricant Research Center
The
Algerian oil company Sonatrach is planning to establish a research
center on lubricants. The company is looking at ways to create its
own lubricants and additive formulas. The research center will operate
a preventive maintenance model by analyzing the impact of lubricants
on mechanical parts.
Airlines
Sonatrach
Takes Over Ownership of Tassili Airlines
The
Algerian state airline carrier Air Algérie transferred a 49% stake
of domestic carrier Tassili Airlines to the oil company Sonatrach.
The transfer papers, which make Tassili a wholly owned business
of Sonatrach, were signed by the two companies CEOs, Mohamed Meziane
of Sonatrach and Tayeb Benouis, of Air Algérie.
Economy
Algeria
to Spend $50 Billion on Economic Recovery
The
Algerian government is working on an investment program worth some
$50 billion in an effort to jump-start the domestic economy. Announced
several times by President Bouteflika and finally confirmed by investment
minister Temmar during a conference in Amman, Jordan, the program
will be implemented over the next five years.
Investing
Dubai
Holding to Invest $300 Million in Tunisia
The
head of UAE-based investment firms Dubai Holding and Dubai International
Capital, Mohammed Al Gergawi, announced that he has established
a $300 million fund to invest in Tunisia.
Energy
Eni
and Sonatrach to Invest on Transmediterranean Pipeline’s Output
Expansion
The Italian energy and engineering firm Eni says it has reached
an agreement with Algeria’s Sonatrach for the expansion of
the Trans Tunisian Pipeline Company (TTPC) pipeline carrying natural
gas from Algeria to Sicily via the Tunisian territory. Eni says
the agreement sets the increase up to 3.2 billion cubic meters of
annual transport capacity starting in 2008 and up to further 3.3
annual billion cubic meters by 2012.
