Two weeks ago, the ECOWAS Inter-Ministerial Meeting of the Nigeria-Morocco Gas Pipeline (NMGP) Project met in Abuja to brainstorm on the progress made with the project implementation.
In attendance at the meeting were top officials from the Republic of Benin; Cabo Verde; Cote d’Ivoire; The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea Bissau; Liberia; Nigeria; Senegal; Sierra Leone, Togo and Morocco. Also represented at the meeting were regional organisations and institutions, as well as ECOWAS specialised agencies on energy including ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development; West African Economic and Monetary Union; West African Gas Pipeline Authority; West African Power Pool; ECOWAS Regional Electricity Regulatory Authority, and ECOWAS Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency.
Other national hydrocarbon companies that participated in the meeting were the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPC); L’Office National Des Hydrocarbures et des Mines du Maroc (ONHMN); La Societe Mauritanienne des Hydrocarbures (SMH).
The main objective of the meeting in Abuja was to present to the ministers in charge of Hydrocarbons the latest versions of these community texts and to provide an update on the overall progress of the project, a necessary step to consolidate the involvement of all Member States in the project development process.
The Nigeria-Morocco Gas Pipeline Project is an initiative of the Federal Government of Nigeria and the Kingdom of Morocco and was conceived during the visit of King Mohammed VI of Morocco to Nigeria in December 2016.
With an estimated cost of $26bn, the African Atlantic Gas Pipeline combines two major projects: the $975m West African Gas Pipeline Extension Project, which spans 678 km, and the 5,669 km Nigeria-Morocco Gas Pipeline, anticipated to cost around $26bn.
The project aims to capitalize on Nigeria’s vast natural gas reserves, boosting the country’s revenue, diversifying its gas export routes, and reducing gas flaring. It will supply gas to Morocco, 13 ECOWAS countries, and Europe, fostering economic integration within the region.
The pipeline extends 5,300 km from Nigeria to Dakhla in Morocco, with an additional 1,700 km of onshore pipeline running from Dakhla to Northern Morocco. Already, MoUs have been executed for the project with ECOWAS, SMH of Mauritania and Petrosen of Senegal.
Following the Memorandum of Understanding between ECOWAS, NNPC, and ONHYM signed on September 15, 2022, and based on the recommendation of the Ministers responsible for Hydrocarbons, the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of States and Government adopted Decision A/DEC.2/07/23 during its 63rd Ordinary Session held in July 2023 in Bissau.
This Legal Document endorsed the process of merging the West African Gas Pipeline Expansion Project and the Nigeria-Morocco Gas Pipeline Project into a single gas pipeline project, running from Nigeria to Morocco and serving all ECOWAS Member States and Mauritania, with a potential future extension toward Europe.
At the same time, Memoranda of Understanding were signed between the project promoters (NNPC and ONHYM) and almost all national oil and gas companies of ECOWAS Member States and Mauritania.
Subsequently, preparatory activities involving all the stakeholders (ECOWAS, ONHYM, NNPC Ltd, national oil and gas companies that had signed MoUs), were conducted, leading to sessions of the Technical Committee, the Project Steering Committee, and meetings with national companies that signed the MoUs.
This inclusive and consensus-based approach resulted in the drafting and review of project governance documents, namely the Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA), the Treaty to be signed by all Project Countries and the Host Government Agreement (HGA), through several workshops.
The Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, Mallam Mele Kyari, while speaking at the event, said that working with its partners, the commitment of the national oil company to deliver the Nigeria-Morocco Gas Pipeline Project is unwavering.
Kyari, who was represented by the NNPC Ltd’s Executive Vice President, Gas Power & New Energy, Mr. Olalekan Ogunleye said decisions made at the meeting will shape the future of the African Atlantic gas project, ensuring a positive impact on the economics of the region’s nation and the lives of the people.
He described the event as a very important milestone in the Nigeria-Morocco Gas Pipeline Project as it reaffirms the commitment of stakeholders to deliver on the project.
He explained further that the NNPC is well positioned to progress the project by leveraging on its experience and technical capabilities ranging from gas production, processing, transmission and marketing as well as its vast experience in executing major gas infrastructure projects in Nigeria.
From the inception of the project to this stage, Kyari said concerted efforts have been made by the government of Nigeria and the Kingdom of Morocco, which led to the very commendable achievements recorded so far.
He said, “Today, we come together to make significant progress in the African Atlantic gas pipeline project, perhaps the largest African project, a transformative initiative that promises to connect at least 13 African nations in shared prosperity and development.
“First and foremost, we would like to extend our gratitude to His Excellency, the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, President Bola Tinubu and the Nigerian government for entrusting NNPC limited with this very strategic project.
“Decisions made here will shape the future of the African Atlantic gas project, ensuring a positive impact on the economics of our nation and the lives of our people.
“A lot of progress has been made with the front-end engineering design, phase two study now completed and work ongoing for service environmental and social impact assessments and the land acquisition and resettlement.
“These achievements underscore our shared capacity and resolve to bring this partner project to fruition, demonstrating both the project’s viability and our capability for effective execution.
“Supported, of course, by strong regional collaboration, which we continue to appreciate, NNPC is well positioned to progress this project by leveraging on its expertise across that production, processing, transmission and marketing and experience having executed similar projects.”
The NNPC Ltd Boss said through this collaboration with its regional partners, the NNPC is committed to ensuring reliable gas supply, robust backbone infrastructure and other key enablers.
“Therefore, we rely on your continued commitment and collaboration to drive the success of the African Atlantic gas pipeline project,” he concluded.
Declaring the meeting open, the Chairman of the Joint Meeting of ECOWAS Ministers of Energy and Hydrocarbons and Nigeria’s Minister of Petroleum Resources (Gas), Ekperikpe Ekpo, said the project will be transformative of the energy landscape of the continent.
“We stand at a critical juncture where these draft agreements hold the power to reshape our energy landscape, strengthen our economies, and uplift our people,” Ekpo stated.
He emphasized that the agreements should demonstrate a strong commitment to advancing hydrocarbon and energy trade across ECOWAS nations, enhancing access to natural gas in West Africa, and expanding Africa’s presence in the global gas market.
He said, “The institutional agreements is an affirmation of our commitment to enhancing hydrocarbon and energy trade within ECOWAS and other African countries, facilitating access to natural gas across the region, and expanding our footprint in global gas markets.”
Delivering his speech, the Minister of Power, Chief Adebayo Adelabu, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry, Mr. Mahmuda Mamman, said the “establishment of the ECOWAS Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Facility represents a transformative step towards achieving our regional energy goals. This facility will act as a catalyst for investments, providing the necessary support and incentives for both public and private sector projects.”
In his speech on behalf of the President of the ECOWAS Commission, Dr. Omar Alieu Touray, the ECOWAS Commissioner for Infrastructure, Energy and Digitisation, Mr. Sediko DOUKA underscored the importance of the African Atlantic Gas Pipeline Project to ECOWAS region noting that the increased access to natural gas will not only boost electricity production/generation capacity, but also drive economic, industrial, and agricultural growth across the region.
“As a transitional energy source, abundant natural gas usage in the region will support our countries in contributing to global climate change efforts, advancing clean and sustainable mobility, and promoting the use of clean cooking solutions.
“Although being a fossil fuel, natural gas has the advantage of being relatively low in pollutants, allowing large-scale energy production. Therefore, it is in our interest to increase its production and accessibility for both industrial and domestic use.” said Mr. Sediko Douka
In her speech, the Minister of Energy Transition and Sustainable Development, the Kingdom of Morocco, Mrs. Leila Benali, said the pipeline is very much a political pipeline, adding that this is also the reason why the Kingdom of Morocco is keen on its implementation.
She conveyed optimism about the project’s ability to unlock new markets and generate employment opportunities.
She said, “We really want to thank our partners, our friends in ECOWAS for sticking and be persistent and resistant in making sure that the work continues on this political vision and political project, for Africa and also for the rest of the world.”
At the end of the meeting, the ECOWAS Ministers of Energy and Hydrocarbons extended to Morrocco and Mauritania adopted the version of the intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) and the Host State Agreement (HGA) revised by experts, as well as the Framework Document for the establishment of the ECOWAS Renewable and Energy Efficiency Facility.
Also adopted at the end of the Joint Meeting, was the Draft ECOWAS Guideline on the promotion of Grid-connected Solar Photovoltaic energy projects and the standard contract models annexed thereto. In the same vein, the Ministers adopted the title of the single project as “African Atlantic Gas Pipeline/Gazoduc Africain Atlantique.
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