Boumerdas

Boumerdès is a seaside city located in the north of Algeria about 50 km east of Algiers and 50 km west of Tizi Ouzou. During French occupation of Algeria, the city was named Rocher Noir, translated from French as Black Rock. The city became the capital of the province, having the same name, according to the administrative division in 1984.

It is the capital city of wilaya (province) of Boumerdès.

The city is famous as a scientific center, including a number of national institutes and the University of M'hamed Bouguerra. The institutes include l'Institut Algérien du Pétrole (the Algerian Petroleum Institute IAP), Faculté des Hydrocarbures et de la Chimie (Faculty of Hydrocarbons and Chemistry FHC), l'Institut National d'Électricité et d'Électronique (The National Institute for Electricity and Electronics INELEC), l'Institut National de Génie mécanique (The National Institute of Mechanical Engineering ENGM), l'Institut National des Industries légères (The National Institute for Light Industries INIL).