Sonatrach Expands Niger Energy Cooperation with New Exploration, Drilling and Fuel Deals
Algeria’s state-owned energy company Sonatrach is expanding its cooperation with Niger through a series of agreements covering oil exploration, drilling services and petroleum-product supplies.
In June 2026, Sonatrach and Niger’s national oil company SONIDEP signed three memoranda of understanding covering seismic exploration, drilling operations and petroleum products.
The agreements build on a cooperation framework established in 2024 and are intended to strengthen technical and commercial collaboration between the two companies.
The exploration cooperation is now being followed by drilling activity. Sonatrach subsidiary ENAFOR began drilling the Kafra Sud-Est 1 exploration well in August, targeting a depth of about 3,900 metres.
The well is located on the Kafra block, close to the Algerian border. Sonatrach has held a prospecting permit covering the block since 2005, while a production-sharing contract with Niger was signed in 2015 and renewed in 2022.
The drilling programme could provide additional information about the hydrocarbon potential of the Kafra area and support further exploration activity.
Sonatrach is also strengthening downstream cooperation with Niger. The company has begun supplying Jet A1 aviation fuel from its Adrar refinery to Niger under a sale-and-purchase agreement with SONIDEP.
The first shipments mark an expansion of direct petroleum-product trade between the two countries.
The broader relationship also includes the Trans-Saharan Gas Pipeline, a proposed 4,128-kilometre project linking Nigeria’s gas resources with Algeria through Niger.
The pipeline is planned to create a north-south gas corridor and connect with Algeria’s existing export infrastructure.
Construction of sections in Algeria began in 2026, while work on the Niger section is being advanced as cooperation between the three countries develops.
Together, the exploration, drilling, petroleum-product and pipeline initiatives point to a broader expansion of energy cooperation between Algeria and Niger.
For Sonatrach, the agreements provide opportunities to extend its technical and operational activities beyond Algeria.
For Niger, they create additional avenues for exploration, petroleum-product supply and participation in regional energy infrastructure.
The developments could also strengthen cross-border energy trade and contribute to the emergence of more integrated energy networks across North and West Africa.
