Nigeria, Algeria, Niger finalise agreements on $13bn Trans-Saharan Gas Pipeline

BY MOTOLANI OSENI

Nigeria has reached new agreements with Algeria and Niger to advance the long-delayed $13 billion Trans-Saharan Gas Pipeline (TSGP), a project aimed at boosting gas exports to Europe.

Officials from the three countries formalised the agreements during a meeting in Algiers on 11 February, covering an updated feasibility study, compensation framework, and a Non-Disclosure Agreement among participating companies.

Special Assistant to President Bola Tinubu on Social Media, Dada Olusegun, confirmed that the deals involve energy firms from the three nations and mark a significant step towards actualising the project.

“The TSGP is a strategic initiative to transport natural gas from Nigeria through Niger to Algeria, where it will be exported to European and global markets,” Olusegun stated.

READ ALSO: NYSC partners SMEDAN for robust Corps empowerment

The 2,565-mile pipeline will link Nigeria’s Warri hydrocarbon fields to Algeria’s Hassi R’Mel gas hub on the Mediterranean coast. Algeria’s segment alone will span 1,435 miles, making up more than half of the project’s total length.

Once operational, the pipeline is expected to transport up to one trillion cubic feet of natural gas annually.

Originally proposed in the 1970s, the TSGP saw various agreements signed in 2002, 2005, 2006, and 2009, but progress stalled. Talks resumed in 2022, with energy ministers from the three countries renewing commitments to the project’s completion.