The gas pipeline that will connect Nigeria to Morocco is a “real way to transform” the African continent, head of Morocco’s mining and hydrocarbons development agency ONHYM said.
Speaking at a conference in the Washington-based Atlantic Council, Amina Benkhadra said the first phase of the pipeline is underway and that a final investment decision is forthcoming.
The project “will enhance security in the region and Europe,” Benkhadra told the conference dubbed “Powering Africa Summit.”
Talks are ongoing with US operators and financial institutions to materialize the pipeline that will stretch over 6000 kilometres and serve some 400 million pepple, she said.
The pipeline is part of Moroco’s Atlantic Initiative which aims to promote regional economic integration and help landlocked countries in the region access global trade through the Atlantic.
The pipeline, which has the backing of Nigeria and the regional grouping ECOWAS, has a potential to boost economic integration across 13 African states, boost energy supply in West Africa and power the region’s economies.
In December, the project reached the land acquisition stage, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNCPL) said in December.
Surveys are currently underway for Environmental and Social Impact Assessments of the project that will cost some 25 billion dollars and benefit 13 countries in West Africa.
The first phase of the pipeline will connect the existing Nigeria-Ghana pipeline to Cote D’Ivoire, while the second phase will link Morocco’s Maghreb- Europe pipeline to Senegal. The final step consists in linking Senegal to Cote D’Ivoire.