Energy & Resources
West African leaders approve Nigeria-Morocco gas pipeline project
West African leaders signed an agreement approving construction of a gas pipeline linking Nigeria and Morocco at an ECOWAS summit in Freetown, Sierra Leone.
The planned Nigeria-Morocco Gas Pipeline would run for about 6,000 kilometres, or 3,700 miles, through 13 countries along Africa's Atlantic coast. It is intended to carry Nigerian gas to Morocco before linking with the Maghreb-Europe pipeline.
ECOWAS chair Julius Maada Bio said the West Africa-Morocco gas pipeline had been signed. Morocco's state hydrocarbons agency ONHYM and Nigeria's state oil company NNPC said in a statement that the project aims to connect west Africa's gas resources with major regional markets. They said it also seeks to strengthen African energy market integration and create a development corridor linking west Africa, the Sahel, Morocco and Europe.
ONHYM and NNPC said the next steps include creating a project company based in Casablanca and a governing authority headquartered in Abuja. Investors would then be brought in before a final investment decision is taken.
An ONHYM source said construction is expected to begin in 2028 and that first gas deliveries are targeted for 2031. The project, first proposed during Moroccan King Mohammed VI's visit to Abuja in 2016, is estimated to cost around $27 billion.
The source said the project's revival has been driven in part by Algeria's 2022 decision to stop supplying gas to Spain via Morocco after diplomatic ties between Algiers and Rabat broke down.
Update
The planned pipeline would run about 6,000 kilometres, or 3,700 miles, through 13 countries along Africa's Atlantic coast.
Morocco's ONHYM and Nigeria's NNPC said the project aims to connect west Africa's gas resources to major regional markets.
The next steps include setting up a project company in Casablanca and a governing authority in Abuja before investors join and a final investment decision is made.
An ONHYM source said construction is expected to begin in 2028, with first gas deliveries targeted for 2031.
The project is estimated to cost about $27 billion.
The project was first proposed during Moroccan King Mohammed VI's visit to Abuja in 2016.
The source says the project's revival has been driven in part by Algeria's 2022 decision to stop supplying gas to Spain via Morocco after Algiers-Rabat diplomatic ties broke down.
Source note: AFP news report published on 19 July 2026 at 22:57:54 UTC.
Uncertainty notes
The final investment decision has not yet been taken.
The construction and first-delivery dates are expected or targeted, not confirmed completion dates.
Source
AFP news report published on .