Leaders "West Africa" They approve the gas pipeline project between Nigeria and Morocco
FREETOWN, July 20, 2017 (WAM) – Leaders of West African countries yesterday approved a project to establish a gas pipeline linking Nigeria and Morocco, during a summit of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) held in Freetown, the capital of Sierra Leone.
The pipeline, which crosses 13 countries along the Atlantic coast of Africa, will be about six thousand kilometers long, and will transport Nigerian gas to Morocco before connecting to the Morocco-Europe pipeline.
“We signed the gas pipeline agreement between West Africa and Morocco,” said Julius Maada Bio, the current president of ECOWAS, adding, “Do not be surprised when the gas reaches you.”
The National Office of Hydrocarbons and Minerals in the Kingdom of Morocco and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited stated in a joint statement that the project aims to link gas resources in West Africa to major regional markets.
The project also aims to enhance the integration of African energy markets and create a new development corridor linking West Africa, the Sahel region, Morocco and Europe.
The two sides added that the next steps include establishing a “project company” based in Casablanca, and establishing a supreme authority for the gas pipeline based in Abuja, before attracting investors and making the final investment decision.
Agence France-Presse (AFP) quoted a source in the Moroccan National Hydrocarbons Office as saying that construction work is expected to begin in 2028, with the first gas shipments to be delivered by 2031.
The cost of the project, whose idea was first proposed during the visit of Moroccan King Mohammed VI to Abuja in 2016, is estimated at approximately $27 billion.
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