The African states of Algeria, Niger and Nigeria want to build a long-planned natural gas pipeline through the Sahara. The three countries signed a declaration of intent, as the state news agency in Algeria announced on Thursday evening.
The 4,000-kilometer pipeline should be completed in a short time, said the Algerian Minister of Energy and Mines, Mohammed Arkab. He did not give an exact timetable.
According to information from Algeria, the world’s tenth largest natural gas producer, the pipeline will be connected to Europe and will be able to deliver 30 billion cubic meters of gas per year. The three countries therefore also regard the project as an investment project, since Europe has been looking for other suppliers after the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine. According to official figures, the costs for the pipeline are estimated at around 13 billion US dollars (12.8 billion euros), 90 percent of which is to be financed by Algeria and Nigeria.
Representatives of the states had already met more than a decade ago to plan the project. Oil companies such as Total and Shell have shown interest in the pipeline in the past, but years ago the Russian state-owned company Gazprom also signed a cooperation agreement with Nigeria.
Report at Algeria Press Service (Arabic)
