Algeria has launched a major international tender, "Algeria Bid 2026," offering seven conventional hydrocarbon exploration and production blocks across strategic southern basins including Illizi, Berkine, and Oued Mya, with bids due by 26 November and contract awards scheduled for 31 January 2027. The announcement comes as oil and gas prices have surged following conflict in the Middle East, which has damaged Gulf infrastructure and blocked the Strait of Hormuz — a critical chokepoint through which around 20% of global hydrocarbon trade normally passes. Algeria, Africa's top gas exporter and a key supplier to the European Union since Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine, is pursuing a $50–60 billion investment plan aimed at doubling its gas output to 200 billion cubic metres by 2030.