Rumours had been rife for months at Algeria's Sonatrach, Africa's largest state-owned oil company, about the imminent departure of its boss, Toufik Hakkar.
Without any public reason being given, Hakkar was finally dismissed on 2 October and replaced by sector veteran Rachid Hachichi, who briefly headed the company in 2019.
Hakkar had managed to keep his job for more than three years after being appointed by President Abdelmadjid Tebboune in February 2020.
But behind the scenes, the clouds had been


