By John Ikani
Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has signed five Memoranda of Understanding with national oil companies and relevant entities of five African countries on the Nigeria-Morocco Gas Pipeline Project.
The five national oil companies and relevant entities are from Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea Bissau and Sierra Leone.
The signing, which took place in Rabat, Morocco, marks yet another significant step in the Nigeria-Morocco Gas Pipeline project execution.
The event was attended by Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPCL Mele Kyari; Dr. Amina Benkhadra, General Director of Morocco’s National Office of Hydrocarbons and Mines; Mr. Baboucarr Njie, Managing Director of the Gambia National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), Gambia and Celedonio Placido Viera, General Director of Petroguin, Guinea Bissau.
Also in attendance were Mr. Amadou Doumbouya, Director General of the National Company of Oil (SONAP), Guinea; Mr. Foday B.L. Mansaray II, Director-General of Petroleum Directorate of Sierra Leone (PDSL) and Dr. Ben K.D. Asante, Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana National Gas Company.
Speaking at the event, Kyari commended NNPC’s partners and Morocco’s National Office of Hydrocarbons and Mines (ONHYM), who have diligently worked with NNPCL through the years to bring the Nigeria-Morocco Gas Pipeline Project to limelight.
Kyari said it was comforting to witness steady growth of the project, especially with inclusion of NNPCL’s counterparts and key institutions from other African countries, through execution of the relevant Memoranda of Understanding.
He recalled that on September 15, 2022, NNPCL and ONHYM signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the ECOWAS Commission in Morocco, adding that this event came a month after NNPC signed additional MoUs with Petrosen of Senegal and SMH of Mauritania.
He said: “Today, we will be attaining another feat by signing five MoUs with the national oil companies and relevant entities from Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea Bissau and Sierra Leone.
“From inception of the project to this stage, concerted efforts have been made by the governments of Nigeria and the Kingdom of Morocco, which led to the very commendable achievements recorded thus far.
“As the strategic vision of our great leaders gains momentum, I would like to express our appreciation to King Mohammed VI of Morocco and President Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria for entrusting NNPC Limited with this strategic project.”
The NNPC boss stated further that the African continent stands to benefit immensely from execution of the project, which extends beyond the supply of gas to energise countries along the route.
What you should know
The over 7,000 km long gas pipeline will link #Nigeria with #Morocco, cross 11 west African countries and extend to Europe. It will be the longest offshore pipeline in the world and the second-longest pipeline overall.
The project is deemed sustainable as Nigeria has over 203 trillion-cubit gas deposit.
Revenue from oil and gas accounts for about two-thirds of Nigeria’s funding.
Experts estimate that Nigeria’s 203 trillion-cubit gas resources will be enough to cover the West African region and other parts of the globe.
In March, the national oil company said it was working on building pipelines that would deliver gas from Nigeria to Europe.
NNPCL is also making concerted efforts in the gas sector through various projects such as the NLNG Train 7, Ajaokuta–Kaduna–Kano Natural Gas Pipeline, Obiafu-Obrikom-Oben Gas Pipeline (OB3) and the Escravos–Lagos Pipeline System (ELPS).
