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Mon, 20 Jul 2026

Mon, 20 Jul 2026 West Africa signs off $25bn mega gas-pipeline plan

A 6,000km pipeline running along the Atlantic coast of 14 countries is to be built starting in 2028.

* Nigeria has Africa's largest proven natural gas reserves and will be the source of the new pipeline.
* The Nigeria-Morocco Atlantic Gas Pipeline, a 6,000km project, has been signed off by West African leaders and is expected to begin construction in 2028 with an estimated cost of $25bn.
* The pipeline will run along the Atlantic coast of 14 African nations, carrying Nigerian gas to Morocco before linking into Europe's existing gas network via Spain.
* Energy expert Charles Majomi says that if leveraged correctly, the pipeline has the potential to stimulate regional industrial growth and boost Africa's power on the international stage.
* The project is expected to be built in phases over several years rather than all at once, with analysts telling the BBC it will not begin in Nigeria because of initial concerns.
* Financing may prove stickier due to inflation and the success of a project of this scale relies on all 13 member nations playing their part to protect the infrastructure from attacks.
* The pipeline is intended to supply natural gas to countries that currently rely on expensive imported fuels, potentially supporting new power generation, fertiliser plants, petrochemical industries and manufacturing along the Atlantic coast.
* Nigeria's state oil firm and Morocco's national mining body are jointly leading the pipeline project, with regional institutions such as Ecowas, the Islamic Development Bank and the Opec Fund for International Development also supporting the initiative.