diff --git a/roles/remove-build-sshkey/vars/main.yaml b/roles/remove-build-sshkey/vars/main.yaml
index ee72d5e97..5f0e55496 100644
--- a/roles/remove-build-sshkey/vars/main.yaml
+++ b/roles/remove-build-sshkey/vars/main.yaml
@@ -1 +1,2 @@
+zuul_ssh_key_algorithm: "rsa"
 zuul_temp_ssh_key: "{{ zuul.executor.src_root }}/../{{ zuul.build }}_id_{{ zuul_ssh_key_algorithm }}"