The firm notes that if built, the Trans-Saharan Natural Gas project will be one of the world’s most expensive energy export programmes, providing a critical link between resource-rich areas in Africa and attractive markets in Western Europe, by transporting natural gas from Nigeria, through Niger to Algeria and then northwards to Spain and Europe.

 

It stated that the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and Sonatrach of Algeria will hold 90 per cent shares of the equity of the project, with the national oil company of Niger taking the remaining 10 per cent.

 

It however noted that  the project might benefit from having an additional international partner with cross-border pipeline experience. Gazprom wisely decided to partner with several European energy companies to deliver the twin Nord Stream gas pipelines between Russia and Germany via the Baltic Sea. “While this arrangement provided some additional financial support, it had a greater benefit securing international expertise and political consensus through the impacting jurisdictions”, it said.

 

The NNPC said that the project had been integrated into the Nigerian Gas Master Plan and is expected to deliver first gas around 2015. Niger Republic had been admitted as a co-sponsor of the pipeline, which is about 4,400km long.

 

SONATRACH also said that Algeria welcomed the opportunity to partake in the project and was ready to add value to it for the benefit of all parties involved and offered the use of the existing gas pipeline network and storage facilities of SONATRACH for the project.

Source : energy mix report