Aside from oil and gas reserves, the primary economic activities of In Salah are agricultural in nature with irrigation being supplied by artesian wells. The oasis has over 200,000 date palms. The chief produce are dates, fruits and vegetables. Fruit and vegetable gardens and Palm groves flank the village on its southern and western edges. These groves are protected from the always advancing sand by hedges. In Salah is also a centre for nomadic Tuareg. The In Salah oil and gas fields are home to the In Salah Project, a major component of which includes a facility to remove CO2 from the gas produced. The CO2 is then re-injected into an underground formation.
Historically, In Salah was formerly a trading town which dealt in slaves, ivory and gold from the south. These goods were exchanged with European goods from the
