Nigeria, Morocco, four others sign deal on $25bn gas pipeline project

Nigeria, Morocco, Cote d’Ivoire, Liberia, Benin, and Guinea have signed four significant Memoranda of Understanding related to the Nigeria-Morocco Gas Pipeline Project, estimated to cost $25 billion.

The project’s Steering Committee also convened to discuss the progress of the project and its strategic direction, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company said in a statement on Friday.

According to the statement, the MoUs were signed on Friday in Abuja between the NNPC and the Office National des Hydrocarbures et des Mines (ONHYM) of Morocco on one hand, and the Société Nationale des Opérations Pétrolières of Cote d’Ivoire, the National Oil Company of Liberia, the Société Nationale des Hydrocarbures of Benin, and the Société Nationale des Pétroles of the Republic of Guinea on the other hand.

It said the MoUs, similar to those signed with ECOWAS on September 15, 2022, Mauritania and Senegal on October 15, 2022, and The Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Sierra Leone, and Ghana on December 5, 2022, reaffirmed the commitment of the parties to the project. 

“Once completed, the project will enhance the monetisation of the natural gas resources of the affected African countries   and also offer a new alternative export route to Europe,” the NNPC said.

It said the signings took place on the sidelines of the Steering Committee meeting of the Nigeria-Morocco Gas Pipeline Project, which was attended by representatives from ECOWAS and all the participating countries, including Nigeria, Benin, Togo, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, The Gambia, Senegal, Mauritania, and Morocco.

“This significant infrastructure project will contribute to accelerating access to energy for all, improving the living conditions of the populations, integrating the economies of the sub-region, and mitigating desertification. It will achieve these goals through the provision of sustainable and reliable gas supply that aligns with the continent’s new environmental commitments, while providing Africa with a new economic, political, and strategic dimension,” the statement said.

In his remarks, the Group CEO, NNPC Ltd, Mr. Mele Kyari, thanked President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the Nigerian government for entrusting NNPC with this strategic project as the national energy company. 

 “As a commercial enterprise, NNPC Ltd. sees this project as an opportunity to monetise Nigeria’s abundant hydrocarbon resources, by expanding Access to energy to support economic growth, industrialisation, and job creation across the African continent and beyond,” he added.

Also speaking, the Director General of ONHYM, Amina Benkhadra, said the gathering represented a progressive step in ensuring social and economic development through energy security and accessibility geared towards attaining total development of Africa by Africans.

In his remarks, the ECOWAS Commissioner for Infrastructure, Energy and Digitisation, Mr. Sédiko Douka, said the gas pipeline project is significant as it will help strengthen the region’s electricity production/generation capacity, stimulate industrial and agricultural development, and and contribute to the energy transition by using a source of energy that is cleaner than other fossil fuels.