Algeria has officially launched construction works on the Trans-Saharan Gas Pipeline (TSGP) following approval of an updated feasibility study for the project by the Steering Committee overseeing the scheme.

The approval of the study and its recomendations were announced during the committee’s fifth meeting in Algiers on Wednesday, attended by Mohamed Arkab, Algeria’s Minister of State and Minister of Energy, Mines and Renewable Energies, Ekperikpe Ekpo, Nigeria’s Minister of State for Petroleum Resources and Hamadou Tchiani, Niger’s Minister of Petroleum

Following adoption of the study, prepared by the UK’s Penspen, Arkab announced the official start of construction works on the Algerian section of the pipeline on Thursday in the presence of his counterparts at Oulf in Adrar province.

He said the Algerian segment will also support transportation of additional gas volumes from existing and future gas fields in the country, particularly the Ahnet Basin.

Previous reports have put the total cost of TSGP at around $13 billion, with planned transport capacity of up to 30 billion cubic metres (bcm) of natural gas annually.

The TSGP is designed to transport Nigerian gas northwards through Niger and Algeria for export to European markets, strengthening Africa-Europe energy connectivity.

While Algeria and Nigeria already possess substantial gas infrastructure that can be integrated into the project, Algeria's President had previously confirmed that Niger’s section of the pipeline will be financed and constructed by state-owned Sonatrach.

The project is structured as a trilateral partnership in which Sonatrach and Nigeria’s state-owned Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) jointly hold 90 percent, while Niger holds the remaining 10 percent stake through SONIDEP.

TSGP is considered one of Africa’s largest strategic energy projects and forms part of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) programme.

(Writing by Majda Muhsen; Editing by Anoop Menon)

(anoop.menon@lseg.com)

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