The Nigerian government has confirmed discussions with Libya regarding a project to construct a gas pipeline between the two countries. Nigeria’s Minister of Oil and Gas, Ikiebe Ikpoki, met with his counterpart from Libya’s Government of National Unity, Khalifa Abdul-Sadiq, on the sidelines of the “Gastech 2024” conference and exhibition held in Houston, USA.
On Saturday, Ikpoki stated on the X platform that the potential gas pipeline would originate in Nigeria and extend to Libya, adding that the strategic meeting aimed to enhance energy cooperation between the two nations. Discussions about building a regional pipeline between Nigeria and Libya have been ongoing, given that both countries are among the leading oil and gas producers in Africa.
The Nigerian government is also consulting with Algerian and Moroccan officials to establish a gas pipeline that would span thousands of kilometers, amid various technical, financial, and security challenges facing the project.
On June 16, 2023, the spokesperson for Libya’s Government of National Unity, Mohamed Hamuda, revealed that the government had granted the Ministry of Oil and Gas permission to conduct technical and economic feasibility studies for a pipeline project that would carry gas from Nigeria through Niger or Chad to Europe via Libya.
The Minister of Oil and Gas announced that his ministry had presented a study to the government on the proposed Nigerian gas line to Europe, and the preliminary study favored routing the pipeline through Niger instead of Chad. He mentioned that a detailed study would be conducted within six months, although no updates have been revealed yet regarding the project.
Exploratory discussions about the feasibility of this project between Libyan and Nigerian officials began on the sidelines of the African Petroleum Producers’ Organization meeting in September 2023. There have been speculations about the possibility of connecting the “Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano” pipeline in Nigeria, once completed, with Libya’s Green Stream pipeline starting from the Wafa field on the border with Algeria.
