Algeria’s oil and gas exports dropped by 12.52% in the first nine months of 2019, according to Zawya.

Exports reached $25.28 billion in October 2019, down from $28.89 in 2018.

This came after a 2% drop in output and an 8% rise in domestic consumption, Energy Minister Mohamed Arkab previously said.

Algeria derives 95% of its foreign revenue from oil and gas sales. For the past nine months, the country has struggled to increase its output amid a mass protest movement.

Earlier this month, Algeria’s house of parliament passed a new energy law to make its oil and gas investment more attractive to international oil companies (IOCs).

Kamel Eddine Chikhi has also been appointed as the new chief executive of the state-run oil and gas company, Sonatrach.