Nigeria has joined fellow African countries in signing a memorandum of understanding on the Nigeria to Morocco gas pipeline project which is projected to improve the trading and usage of the resource in the continent
This was made known in a statement signed by the Chief Corporate Communications Officer, NNPC Limited, Garba Deen Muhammad in Abuja on Friday.
It read “Today, another important milestone was achieved at the headquarters of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) as four significant Memoranda of Understanding related to the Nigeria Morocco Gas Pipeline Project were signed. Additionally, the project’s Steering Committee convened to discuss the progress of the Project and its strategic direction.”
“Four Memoranda of Understanding were signed on Friday, June 16, in Abuja as part of the Nigeria-Morocco Gas Pipeline Project. These tripartite MOUs were respectively and successively signed between the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) and the Office National des Hydrocarbures et des Mines (ONHYM) of Morocco on one hand, and the Société Nationale des Opérations Pétrolières of Cote d’Ivoire (PETROCI), the National Oil Company of Liberia (NOCAL), the Société Nationale des Hydrocarbures of Benin (SNH-Benin), and the Société Nationale des Pétroles of the Republic of Guinea (SONAP) on the other hand.”
It affirmed that the project will improve the fortunes of the countries involved through proper harnessing of their natural gas resources and provide an alternative to exporting the resources to Europe.
“These Memoranda of Understanding, similar to those signed with ECOWAS on September 15, 2022, Mauritania and Senegal on October 15, 2022, and The Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Sierra Leone, and Ghana on December 5, 2022, reaffirm the commitment of the Parties to this strategic project. Once completed, the project will enhance the monetization of the natural gas resources of the affected African countries and also offer a new alternative export route to Europe.”
“This significant infrastructure project will contribute to accelerating access to energy for all, improving the living conditions of the populations, integrating the economies of the sub-region, and mitigating desertification. It will achieve these goals through the provision of sustainable and reliable gas supply that aligns with the continent’s new environmental commitments, while providing Africa with a new economic, political, and strategic dimension.”
The Group CEO, NNPC Ltd, Mr. Mele Kyari thanked President Bola Ahmed Tinubu said “as a commercial enterprise, NNPC Ltd. sees this project as an opportunity to monetize Nigeria’s abundant hydrocarbon resources, by expanding access to energy to support economic growth, industrialization, and job creation across the African continent and beyond.”
Also, the ECOWAS Commissioner for Infrastructure, Energy and Digitization, Mr. Sédiko Douka described the gas pipeline project as a significant step towards strengthening the region’s electricity generation capacity which will stimulate industrial and agricultural development,l and contribute to the energy transition by using a source of energy that is cleaner than other fossil fuels.
