Algeria’s nuclear energy ambitions still stalled despite potentialhttps://en.majalla.com/node/328006/business-economy/algeria%E2%80%99s-nuclear-energy-ambitions-still-stalled-despite-potential
Algeria’s nuclear energy ambitions still stalled despite potential
There are some very good reasons why the North African country should pursue civil nuclear power generation, but as experts warn, there are also some very good reasons to pause
Al Majalla
Algeria’s nuclear energy ambitions still stalled despite potential
With enough uranium to power two huge nuclear power plants for 60 years, two small reactors already in operation, and a research centre generating nuclear knowledge, there seems little reason not to roll out a long-promised civil nuclear power programme in Algeria, not least because most neighbouring states would buy any surplus energy.
Yet Algeria, which already has an energy surplus thanks to its natural gas deposits, has yet to launch its first nuclear power station, an ongoing delay that continues to spark debate among energy experts and policymakers. Algerian energy specialist Mehdi Kherfi recently said: “What surprises me is why Algeria has not harnessed nuclear energy to generate electricity, despite possessing the resources and strategic positioning to develop a promising peaceful nuclear programme.”
With a 2,148km Mediterranean Sea coastline, the country has access to the water it would need for reactor cooling, and with ministers recognising the need to move away from hydrocarbons, the logic for nuclear energy in Algeria would appear to be there, especially given that countries across North Africa would buy the electricity generated. What, then, might be the problem?
Supply and demand
Before examining the reasons behind this delay, it is worth assessing Algeria’s current energy production capacity and its outlook. According to Khalifa Mohamed of the Electrical Industries Consortium, Algeria’s installed electricity generation capacity is around 26,000 megawatts (MW) annually, enough to meet domestic demand even during peak periods, such as in July 2025, when consumption reached 20,500MW.
The surplus can, and is, being used to penetrate the African energy market to help address the continent’s acute electricity supply crisis, which has been partly fuelled by rapid population growth. Algeria already exports electricity, notably to Tunisia. In 2023, the state-owned electricity and gas firm Sonelgaz recorded $253mn in exports, which came both from electricity and locally manufactured high-tech equipment.
Algeria has around 29,000 tonnes of its own uranium, enough to power two 1,000MW nuclear plants for up to 60 years
Sonelgaz is now looking further afield. In July 2025, it signed an agreement in Cotonou, Benin, with the West African Power Pool for electricity production and transmission, alongside a Memorandum of Understanding with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) regional regulatory authority.
Earlier this year, in March, Ethiopia expressed interest in Algerian expertise to address rural and agricultural electricity shortages. In addition, Sonelgaz has also secured new projects in the Ivory Coast and Mozambique, and wants to expand into Libya via Tunisia, with ambitions extending to Egypt, which faces its own energy constraints.
Beyond hydrocarbons
Despite much talk of renewables, natural gas still accounts for 99% of Algeria's electricity generation, even though the government's national energy strategy calls for renewables to contribute 30% of the country's energy by 2035. Indeed, there is some movement in this direction.
A programme is underway to develop 15,000MW of renewable capacity, with the first phase due to deliver 3,200MW across 20 sites. State energy giants Sonatrach and Sonelgaz are converting hydrocarbon production sites—totalling 1,300MW—as well as southern stations (50MW) into solar-powered facilities.
Sonatrach Energy headquarters in Algiers, 20 November 2019.
Among the reasons to look to the nuclear industry is that Algeria has its own uranium —approximately 29,000 tonnes —enough to power two 1,000MW nuclear plants for up to 60 years, according to former energy minister and expert Yousef Yousfi. These reserves are concentrated in Hoggar and Tamanrasset in the far south, almost 2,000km from Algiers, within one of the Sahara's richest mineral zones. Yet uranium mining in this region has been suspended since 2012, for unknown reasons.
A slow start
To some, Algeria's delayed nuclear ambitions are a case of untapped potential, now stretching almost three decades. Its nascent nuclear programme was formally launched in 1996 with the creation of a research body known as the Atomic Energy Commission. Tasked with shaping national nuclear policy, it oversaw implementation strategies, updated safety standards, and regulated the development and management of radioactive materials and nuclear facilities.
Algeria has two small nuclear research reactors, not for electricity generation but for building scientific and technical capacity. The first, Nour (in Draria, west of Algiers), is a 1MW light-water research facility using uranium enriched to 20%, built with Argentina in 1989. Nour is currently being modernised, with a new laboratory to produce radioactive isotopes for medical and industrial use. The second reactor, Salam, entered service in 1993. It operates with heavy water and is primarily used to produce radiopharmaceuticals.
Despite these technical foundations, Algeria's nuclear ambitions face a range of practical challenges, including site security and the suitability of the location. On the latter point, nuclear reactors need vast quantities of water for cooling, and although Algeria has a 2,148km Mediterranean coastline, this is also where 80% of Algeria's population lives, and international safety standards advise against building nuclear facilities near densely populated areas.
This is one of three problems highlighted by economist Slimane Nasser, who spoke to Al Majalla. Another involves selecting strategic international partners. Algeria has previously relied on support from Russia, China, France, the United States, and Argentina, but France's role has diminished in recent years due to political tensions.
Partners and risks
In a recent development, Energy Minister Mohamed Arkab met with Wang Yong, the director of China's Overseas Nuclear Industry Corporation, to review bilateral cooperation in atomic energy. The discussions centred on peaceful nuclear applications, particularly in medicine, and explored avenues for future collaboration. Algeria's government also signed a memorandum of understanding with Rosatom, Russia's state-owned nuclear energy firm, outlining cooperation in areas including nuclear power generation, research reactors, and fuel cycle technologies.
The third concern may be the biggest, and was raised by former Energy Minister Youcef Yousfi: seismic activity. Algeria's coast is not only densely populated, but it also lies in seismically active zones. Yousfi argued that relocating plants inland might mitigate earthquake risk, but would reintroduce the issue of water scarcity.
As if to underline the danger, Yousfi referenced the 2011 Fukushima disaster in Japan, where a powerful earthquake and resulting tsunami disabled the cooling systems at a nuclear plant, causing the reactor cores to overheat, melt, and release radioactive materials—resulting in the worst nuclear accident since Chernobyl.
Geologists have long warned of Algeria's vulnerability in this regard. In a March 2021 interview with El Watan, Algerian geologist Azeddine Boudiaf said, "geological studies indicate Algeria's coastline could be at risk of tsunamis, similar to certain European countries". In other words, what seems like such a good idea may not, in fact, be the wisest investment. For now, at least, Algeria looks set to stick to gas.
