ALGIERS— Algeria, Niger and Nigeria signed on Thursday a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the construction of a gas pipeline across the Sahara Desert that will supply Europe with additional gas, said the Algerian energy minister.
The signing ceremony was held in Algiers, capital of Algeria, in the presence of the energy ministers of the three African countries, and came in the wake of a trilateral meeting on the Trans-Saharan Gas-Pipeline (TSGP).
“Today’s meeting follows two previous meetings respectively in Niamey in February and in Abuja in June,” Algerian Minister of Energy and Mines Mohamed Arkab told reporters.
“We have taken a number of decisions and we are making remarkable advance in the construction of this strategic project,” he said.
The TSGP, a mega gas pipeline project linking Algeria, Niger and Nigeria, is expected to span 4,000 km and could send up to 30 billion cubic meters of natural gas per year.
The Trans-Saharan gas pipeline is an estimated $13 billion project that could send up to 30 billion cubic metres a year of supplies to Europe.
According to Algeria’s Ennahar TV, the pipeline is expected to span around 4,000 kilometers. It has been slated to start in Warri, Nigeria, and to end in Hassi R’Mel, Algeria, where it would connect to existing pipelines that run to Europe.
The idea was first proposed more than 40 years ago and an agreement signed between the countries in 2009, but progress stalled.Advertisement • Scroll to continue
Algeria exported 54 billion cubic meters of gas in 2021, mainly to Italy and Spain.
Source: NAM NEWS NETWORK