West African leaders have approved plans for a gas pipeline linking Nigeria to Morocco, marking a major political milestone for one of Africa's most ambitious infrastructure projects.
Issued on: 26/07/2026 - 10:54
3 min Reading time
The agreement, signed by the Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas) at a summit in Sierra Leone on Monday, establishes the legal framework for the pipeline, which has been under discussion since 2016. "Don't be surprised when the gas comes your way," quipped Julius Maada Bio, Sierra Leone's president and current head of Ecowas, following the signature. The roughly 6,000km pipeline will run along Africa's Atlantic coast, carrying Nigerian natural gas to Morocco, before connecting with the existing Maghreb-Europe pipeline to Spain. Construction is expected to start in 2028. "The plan currently on the table envisages 30 billion cubic metres of gas per year, of which around 15 billion will go to Morocco and then on to Europe," says Amina Benkhadra, head of Morocco's National Office of Hydrocarbons and Mines (ONHYM), which is overseeing the project on Morocco's side. Benkhadra said getting agreement from Ecowas was important because it transforms years of political support into a common legal framework. "The signing of this agreement marks the culmination of a long process of consultation," she told RFI, citing the harmonisation of rules on governance, taxation, regulatory stability, investment protection and cross-border cooperation for all the countries involved.
