L. Fituni, I. Abramova Resource Potential of Africa and Russia's ...

that the gas crisis between Russia and Ukraine was "commercial and
not political." 43
If they have the will, Russian oil and gas companies can look
forward to significantly expanding their presence in the Algerian
hydrocarbon production market as part of the plans of the Algerian
state company SONATRACH to invest up to $63 billion in developing
the industry during the period up to and including 2012 using
both Algerian funds and funds of foreign partners.
Soviet assistance to Egypt in exploring its mineral resources began
soon after the signing in 1958 of a general agreement on economic
and technical cooperation as a part of measures to develop
heavy industry in the country whose mineral raw-material base had
been investigated rather inadequately. The country mined small
quantities of oil, phosphorites, manganese, polymetallic ores, soda,
rock, salt and some other minerals.
Soviet oil experts provided assistance to the Egyptian General
Petroleum Authority in geophysical and prospecting work for oil in
the Suez Gulf area. In 1958, two new oil deposits were discovered
with their help in the region of Bakra and Karim on the western
coast of the Suez Gulf.
Soviet experts have reviewed the available geophysical materials
on the northern part of the Western Desert with an area of about
200,000 square kilometers. On the basis of that work aeromagnetic
surveys over an area of 184,000 square kilometers were carried out
in western sectors of the desert in 1966–1968, and seismic and drilling
work was conducted in accordance with the methods used in the
USSR. Egyptian state agencies have been provided with elaborate
materials about the geological structure of the territories surveyed,
with evaluations of their oil reserves.
Soviet equipment has also been supplied to the Central Laboratory
of Mineral Raw Materials in Egypt. Besides, Soviet organizations
have supplied Egypt with 20 mobile laboratories for analyzing
raw materials in field conditions.
An important aspect of Soviet experts' work in Egypt was prospecting
for iron ore, the demand for which had considerably grown
with the enlargement of the Helwan Iron and Steel Works up to 1.5
103