Saturday, during a work visit in the Mascara wilaya, the Algerian minister of agriculture, local development and fishing Abdeslam Chelghoum, said 48% of agricultural lands across the country were unused. This is in part the fault of farmers but the government also which plans to solve the issue by implementing a global rehabilitation plan for agricultural lands. To this end, a ministerial comity...

Nigeria, Africa’s leading economy, after its grand space ambitions just commissioned its first high speed rail system. President Buhari indeed officially inaugurated the country’s and West Africa’s first high speed train on July 26, 2016. The project which was partially executed by Nigeria’s former president, Jonathan Goodluck, was concretized with the help of a $849 million taken...

Chinese group Dongfeng Yangtse will build in Tangiers, Morocco, a car assembly unit (buses and latest generation electric cars). The project was estimated to cost more than a million dirham ($101.4 million). The fim’s CEO, Wu Tian Cai, told this to the local press on July 21, 2016. The plant whose construction is to start soon, should be operational in 2017. With a production target of...

The Tunisian Ministry of Energy and Mining has revealed that as at July 20, 2016, oil production dropped from 8.6% to 9.48 million barrels, while that of natural gas dropped from 12.8% to 1,202. 5 million m3. These declines were as a result of the shutting down of production for technical reasons, social movements and natural regression of most fields. The Chargui gas field in Kerkennah was...

In Upper Egypt, the Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, Tarek El-Molla (photo), has announced that the Ministry has signed two contracts with U.S-based IPR and Cyprus’ Mediterra, for oil and gas exploration. The agreement was signed between Egypt’s Ganoub El-Wadi Petroleum Holding Company (GANOPE), IPR and Mediterra. Under the contract, three exploration wells will be drilled with...

Three Nigerian independent companies have been granted two acreages for exploration in Uganda. The companies are; Waltersmith Petroman Oil Limited, Niger Delta Petroleum Resources (NDPR) and Oranto Petroleum. These companies are the only proven hydrocarbon producers from the ten companies which made it to the final list for six blocks announced in 2015. The remaining firms includes,...

In Morocco, the Ministry of Industry, Investment and Digital Economy announced in a statement the launching of a digital platform dedicated to industrial property which aims to meet investors’ needs. This tool “will inform investors about land availability in industrial areas to facilitate with their decision taking and boost transparency and visibility regarding industrial property. This...

South African banking group Standard Bank was just awarded a banking licence in Cote d’Ivoire. The licence for Standard Bank Cote d’Ivoire (Stanbic Cote d’Ivoire) was green-lit by a Ministerial Order signed by Adama Koné, Minister of Economy and Finance, in agreement with the WAEMU’s banking commission. Standard Bank had a representative office in Cote d’Ivoire since 2014 but no...

The government of Tunisia announced it is selling a 35.529% interest in Adwya. This stake corresponds to a block of shares which was re-purchased by the new government from the Princesse El Materi Holding, which was renamed El Kerema Holding and which is now the transferor in the new operation. The transaction is opened to Tunisian and foreign companies and individuals. Interested investors can...

Four companies have been granted tenders to supply the Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company (EGAS) with 11 Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) shipments between June and August.The companies are: Trafigura, Royal Dutch Shell, Rosneft and PetroChina. Trafigura is to supply five LNG shipments, Shell will supply three, Rosneft two while PetroChina will supply just one. EGAS in May, issued a tender for a...