ALGERIA - Anadarko Operations - Berkine.

Anadarko Algerie, a unit of Houston-based Anadarko Petroleum Corp., is the largest foreign oil producer in Algeria thanks to huge discoveries it has made since 1993. The company is also the biggest foreign investor in the country. It has found 2,800m barrels of oil reserves in Algeria, where it will be involved in 665,000-715,000 b/d of oil production and 4,000 MCM/y in gas production by 2005.

In June 2002 Anadarko co-operator Agip pushed oil output in their Blocks 404a and 403 to 285,000 b/d after having brought its fourth and final oil treatment train in Hassi Berkine South (HBNS) on stream in April. It has found most of the fields in this block, with a major extension found in an adjacent block by Agip. The production stream now is for a consortium consisting of Sonatrach (51%), Anadarko (24.5%), Maersk (12.25%), and Agip's Lasmo (12.25%). Anadarko has invested more than $2 bn in this. The crude oil is exported through the Nezla pipeline, which can handle over 300,000 b/d (see background in Vol. 56, Gas Market Trends No. 6).

In its Hassi Berkine North East prospect on Block 404, where its partners are Maersk and Lasmo (Agip), Anadarko in January 2003 made a big find as its HBNE-1 exploration well tested 4,092 b/d of oil and 6.7 MCF/d of gas in a 16-metre net pay.

In mid-2002 Anadarko in partnership with Maersk got Block 403c/e, next to Block 404a, which increased the US company's gross acreage in the Berkine basin to 4m. Anadarko was to shoot 200 km of 2D seismic and drill one exploration well in its first three-year period. It holds 67% in this venture, with Maersk owning the rest. Anadarko's Algerian boss Tony Meyer said: "We are excited about the potential of this block. Block 403c/e is close to our existing production facilities at Hassi Berkine South. With this infrastructure already in place, future discoveries could be developed quickly and economically". In 2001 Anadarko got Block 406b in the same region and on the border with southern Tunisia; in November 2002 it gave a 40% stake in this to Kuwait's KUFPEC. In its Block 208, where partners are Maersk and Lasmo (Agip), Anadarko is developing seven oil and gas fields - EKT, El Merk, El Merk N, El Merk E, El Merk C, El Kheit, and El Tessekha - for an oil production stream of 150,000-200,000 b/d to start up gradually from 2004. Anadarko is also spending $882m on development of the gas structures at these fields. Together, they will be producing about 4,000 MCM/year by 2004.

Investing almost $2.85 bn in this country, Anadarko has made Algeria its main oil zone. To the US firm, in which Sonatrach has had a stake since the 1980s, Algeria is more important than Yemen has been to Hunt. Anadarko is the biggest among the US independents, having acquired Canada's Gulfstream Resources, Berkley Petroleum and Union Pacific Resources (see Vol. 56, Gas Market Trends No. 6).