The announcement made by Abdelmadjid Tebboune regarding the effective launch of the Trans-Saharan gas pipeline linking Nigeria to Algeria via Niger marks a major strategic turning point in the continent’s energy geopolitics. By specifying that construction on Nigerien territory will begin immediately after the month of Ramadan, the President has sent a clear and unmistakable signal: the competing Nigeria–Morocco project now firmly belongs to the past. It is worth recalling that Algeria has already completed the section of the route located on its own territory, bringing the infrastructure all the way to the Niger border at In Guezzam—demonstrating both its preparedness and its determination to bring this large-scale energy corridor to fruition.
A strong political signal
This presidential announcement is not just another technical statement. It comes at a moment of global energy realignment, as Europe searches for reliable alternatives to Russian gas and energy routes increasingly serve as tools of geopolitical influence.
The Algerian–Nigerian project—commonly known as the Trans-Saharan Gas Pipeline (TSGP)—is far from new. Conceived in the early 2000s, it was designed as a strategic corridor connecting Nigeria’s immense reserves to Algeria’s existing infrastructure already linked to the European market. The logic behind it is simple: Algeria possesses an operational gas network directly connected to Europe through functioning pipelines and LNG terminals.
By contrast, the Nigeria–Morocco project—spanning more than 5,000 kilometers along the Atlantic coast—would have required the construction of entirely new infrastructure crossing over a dozen coastal countries with vastly different political, economic, and security realities. Technically ambitious and diplomatically appealing on paper, it nonetheless suffered from a decisive handicap: the absence of concrete financial and strategic viability.
Realism versus communication
The Trans-Saharan pipeline offers three major structural advantages:
- A much shorter distance.
- Immediate connection to the European network via Algeria.
- A trilateral cooperation framework already institutionalized between Algiers, Niamey, and Abuja.
The Nigeria–Morocco project, meanwhile, relied far more on image-building and diplomatic branding than on genuine energy rationality. Its estimated cost—well above 25 billion dollars according to various projections—raised serious questions about funding, especially in a global context marked by energy transition and increasing investor caution.
Tebboune’s announcement therefore marks a genuine shift: the move from declarations of intent to concrete implementation on the ground.
It should also be noted that Italy has recently expressed strong support for the Trans-Saharan project, viewing it as an essential lever for securing a long-term gas supply and definitively ending its dependence on Russian gas.
The Niger factor: a decisive element
The clarification that work on Nigerien soil will begin after Ramadan is crucial. It confirms that Niamey is fully committed to the trans-Saharan dynamic. Without Niger, neither project would have been geographically feasible.
By securing the Algiers–Niamey–Abuja axis, Algeria is consolidating a Sahelian strategic depth that goes far beyond the energy sector alone. The pipeline becomes both a tool of regional integration and an engine of economic stabilization for Niger.
Conversely, the Atlantic project is left without any real strategic credibility. Lacking a solid continental anchor and a concrete execution timeline, it is relegated to the status of a diplomatic projection with no operational translation.
The reality of energy markets
European markets today seek three things: security, speed, and reliability.
Algeria already offers:
- Operational gas pipelines to Europe.
- A long-standing reputation as a dependable supplier.
- Existing expansion capacity.
The Trans-Saharan project aligns naturally with the optimization of existing infrastructure. By contrast, the Atlantic route would have required an entirely new corridor, exposed to maritime, political, and financial uncertainties.
In a context where investors privilege risk reduction, the rational choice becomes evident.
A strategic conclusion
Saying that the Nigeria–Morocco project is “dead and buried” is no longer a matter of controversy but a simple observation: one of credibility. In the world of energy, a project becomes real only when the machines start moving and the ground begins to tremble. By announcing the effective start of construction right after Ramadan, President Abdelmadjid Tebboune has shifted the Trans-Saharan gas pipeline from the realm of intentions into that of implementation. In gas geopolitics, it is execution—not rhetoric—that sets the pace.
Everything now indicates that the region’s energy trajectory will be shaped by a solid and coherent trans-Saharan axis, while the Atlantic option gradually fades from the horizon. At a time when the tectonic plates of global energy are shifting, Algeria advances with the patience of a builder and the discretion of a strategist. It is within this quiet reconfiguration that the announcement made in Algiers, during the Nigerien president’s visit, takes on its full significance: the effective launch of the Nigerian phase of the Nigeria–Niger–Algeria pipeline, a backbone intended to link the Gulf of Guinea’s gas wealth to the shores of the Mediterranean.
Behind the President’s measured words—“the practical procedures will begin immediately after Ramadan”—lies a continental turning point. The future pipeline is not a mirage rising from the desert sands: it is the product of patient studies, mature negotiations, and a trust carefully built between three nations that see in this North–South axis the engine of a new Sahelian development. Algeria promotes a vision grounded in stability, pragmatism, and tangible investment—far removed from media theatrics and superficial grandstanding.
Meanwhile, the Atlantic project promoted by Morocco is mired in its own contradictions. Designed to cross more than a dozen countries, it rests more on political spectacle than on solid technical or financial foundations. Excessive costs, geopolitical obstacles, and the absence of proven profitability have led experts to view it as an alluring yet elusive mirage. A continental infrastructure cannot be built on enthusiastic communiqués alone.
By contrast, the Nigeria–Niger–Algeria corridor stands out through its straightforward logic: a direct, coherent route leveraging existing infrastructure already connected to Europe. Extending an established network is all that is required to channel a new energy flow. This continuity—simple yet decisive—gives the project a robustness that media-driven constructs lack.
In a world desperately searching for new energy sources, Africa seeks to assert a stronger voice. Through the sobriety of its announcements and the solidity of its commitments, Algeria sends a clear message: development is not proclaimed—it is built. Not on illusions, but on real projects anchored in the ground, capable of connecting nations and shaping, beyond rhetoric, the contours of a shared future.
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