UAE backs Morocco-Nigeria pipeline

Morocco and the UAE signed a deal to invest in the Atlantic gas pipeline that will channel Nigerian gas to North Africa and ultimately to Europe.

The deal was part of a series of memorandums of understanding signed during a state visit by King Mohammed VI to Abu Dhabi.

It signals the UAE readiness to invest in the promising project, key to fostering economic integration and energy security in West Africa.

The Atlantic Nigerian-Moroccan pipeline will also help Western African nations develop their gas exports to Europe, especially Mauritania and Senegal where significant gas assets have been discovered.

Studies are already underway for this structural project that has the political backing of Nigeria and the rest of the ECOWAS countries.

The project was spurred by King Mohammed VI who agreed in 2016 with then Nigerian President Buhari to launch the project.

The UAE backing of the project will help mobilize needed funding for the completion of this structural project that will give a safe and steady energy supply to West Africa, Morocco and beyond.

The UAE and Morocco agreed that the investment projects they signed, during King Mohammed VI visit to Abu Dhabi, need to be implemented within three months via capital investments, competitive and innovative funding, concessional loans, and grants.

The UAE’s Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund is the fourth richest globally and the country has extensive experience in infrastructure investments across the globe.

Nigeria’s energy minister Ekperikpe Ekpo said a few days ago that works to build the pipeline will start next year.