Gas, Investment, Friendship Treaty: Algiers-Madrid, the Thaw

President Abdelmadjid Tebboune received Mr Albares at the Presidential Palace in the presence of Foreign Minister Ahmed Attaf and Minister for Hydrocarbons and Mines Mohamed Arkab. This line-up of ministers speaks volumes about the nature of this visit: rather than being primarily diplomatic, it is fundamentally about energy.

Moreover, according to Reuters reports, the two countries have begun negotiations to increase natural gas supplies via the Medgaz pipeline, with a potential increase of around 10% on current volumes.

20 minutos reports that the planned additional capacity ranges from 500 million to 1 billion cubic meters (Gcm), in addition to the 30 to 35 Gcm that Spain imports annually from all of its suppliers.

“We have agreed to strengthen this strategic partnership in the energy sector,” Mr Albares said following his talks in Algiers, publicly acknowledging that “no details” had yet been finalised and that the discussions centred on “a general framework”. In diplomatic terms, this wording implies that Algiers will set the final terms.

The figures speak for themselves. According to data from Enagas, the Spanish gas network operator, Algerian gas accounted for over 29% of Spain’s total gas imports during the first two months of 2026. Algeria is thus, for the third consecutive year, Spain’s leading supplier of natural gas — a fact that Mr Albares himself was keen to highlight to President Tebboune.

This Spanish dependence is not merely a temporary phenomenon. The Spanish energy group Naturgy, in which the Algerian shareholder Sonatrach holds a stake, has gas contracts with the national company for around 5 billion cubic metres per year, according to data disclosed to the market in 2022.

It is against this backdrop that Naturgy’s CEO, Francisco Reynes, stated this week that he wished to “strengthen relations” with Sonatrach.

The agreement is not limited to hydrocarbons. According to *20 minutos*, the two governments have committed to ‘going beyond gas’ by exploring new avenues for cooperation in solar power and green hydrogen, two sectors in which Algeria’s potential — thanks to exceptional sunshine and vast areas of the Sahara — is considerable and still largely untapped.

According to the same source, ‘joint investments’ between Spanish and Algerian companies across ‘the entire hydrocarbons sector’ are also under consideration.

The revival of the 2002 treaty: a strong political signal

Beyond the figures, it was on the diplomatic front that Algiers sent the strongest message. President Tebboune officially notified Mr Albares of his decision to reactivate the Treaty of Friendship, Good Neighbourliness and Cooperation between Algeria and Spain, which has been in force since October 2002, according to a statement from the Office of the President of the Republic.

The treaty was suspended in 2022 after Madrid backed a plan for autonomy under Moroccan sovereignty for Western Sahara. Four years later, it was Spain that travelled to Algiers to normalise relations, and it was the Algerian president who decided on the timing and terms of the resumption.

The geopolitical message is therefore very clear: Algeria will not compromise on its principles, but it knows how to reward partners who adopt a more cooperative stance.

This visit is therefore part of a broader trend. The closure of the Strait of Hormuz and the war in the Middle East have served as a stark reminder to Europe of its energy vulnerability and the value of stable, reliable and geographically close suppliers. Algeria ticks all these boxes.

In this context, Algiers is not merely weathering the economic climate: it is systematically capitalising on it by turning its gas revenues into a diplomatic lever, attracting industrial investment in growth sectors, and positioning itself as a key player in the Mediterranean energy transition.

The President of the Republic has reactivated the Treaty of Friendship

The President of the Republic, Abdelmadjid Tebboune, informed the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Spain, José Manuel Albares, of his decision to reactivate the Treaty of Friendship, Good Neighbourliness and Cooperation between Algeria and Spain, which has been in force since October 2002, according to a statement from the Presidency of the Republic, quoted by the APS.

“The President of the Republic, Mr Abdelmadjid Tebboune, received, on 26 March 2026, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Spain, Mr José Manuel Albares, who was on an official visit to Algeria,” the statement reads.

The meeting “provided an opportunity to review the state of Algerian-Spanish relations, as well as the promising prospects they offer, with these relations currently experiencing remarkable momentum in terms of consolidation and diversification,” the statement notes.

“To build on this momentum, the President of the Republic has informed the Spanish Minister for Foreign Affairs of his decision to reactivate the Treaty of Friendship, Good Neighbourliness and Cooperation, which has linked Algeria and Spain since October 2002.”