Morocco-Nigeria Offshore Gas Pipeline to Europe Attracts Investors, Set to Be World’s Longest

Morocco and Nigeria together for a large-scale project. "Nigeria and Morocco are teaming up to build the world’s longest offshore pipeline," Tolu Ogunlesi, media adviser to Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari, said on his Twitter account. Recalling that a partnership had initially been signed in June 2018 between the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and the National Office of Hydrocarbons and Mines (ONHYM) of Morocco, he specified that through this project gas will be transported from Nigeria to Morocco to Europe by crossing 11 West African countries.

According to the explanations of Timipre Sylva, Nigerian Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, the project is an extension of the West African gas pipeline project which is already transporting gas from Nigeria to Ghana, reports the local media. It is "at the stage of studies and the search for financial partners, to carry it out to Morocco where it will be connected to the European market," he added. "We want to continue this same gas pipeline to Morocco along the coast. For now, we are at the level of studies, and of course, we are at the level of securing the financing of this project and many entities are showing interest," said the Nigerian official.

In addition to Morocco and Nigeria, other countries or organizations or even individuals are interested in this project. These include the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and Russia. "The Russians are very eager to invest in this project and there are many other entities that are also eager to invest in this project because it is a gas pipeline that will transport our gas across many countries in Africa and also, to the edge of the African continent where we can have access to the European market. [...] OPEC is also interested in the project and has expressed its interest," said the Nigerian Minister of State.

"For now, the two investors in this project are Nigeria and Morocco, we are the two countries that are ready to come together to develop this gas pipeline," he also specified.