In Amenas will reopen before February 24

The Algerian gas plant that witnessed an international hostage crisis in January will reopen before February 24, Sonatrach chief Abdelhamid Zerguine announced on Monday. The launch date was chosen to mark the anniversary of the nationalisation of Algeria's petroleum industry. Work at the plant had stopped completely following the January 16 attack by a terrorist group led by Mokhtar Belmokhtar. Plant facilities that sustained the least damage during the incident will be reopened, Zerguine said before heading to Norway to give his condolences to Statoil, the Norwegian company that shares the In Amenas site with Algeria's state-owned Sonatrach. The plant will run at a third of its total capacity, producing natural gas and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG). The site relies on the oil field of Tiguentourine, Hassi Ouan Abecheu and Ouan Tardert. The complex, run by Sonatrach, Statoil and BP has increased Algeria's gas exports to Europe.