Algeria and Niger discuss progress of $13bn Trans-Saharan Gas Pipeline

Algeria and Niger have held high-level talks to revive previously agreed cooperation in the hydrocarbons sector, including the strategic $13bn Trans-Saharan Gas Pipeline (TSGP) project, Algerian Minister of State for Energy and Mines Mohamed Arkab said on January 26, quoted by Al24 News.

Arkab met Niger’s Minister of Petroleum, Hamad Tini, in Niamey. They discussed the resumption of activities by Algerian energy major Sonatrach and assessing progress on the long-planned gas pipeline linking Nigeria to Europe via Niger and Algeria.

The TSGP is a massive 4,128-kilometre infrastructure project designed to transport up to 30bn cubic meters of natural gas annually from Nigeria, through Niger, to Algeria’s Mediterranean coast for export to Europe. The pipeline is seen by both sides as a cornerstone project for enhancing energy security and boosting gas exports from West and North Africa to international markets.

The meeting was attended by Sonatrach’s chief executive Noureddine Daoudi, senior executives from Sonatrach International (SIPEX), and officials from both countries’ energy ministries, alongside representatives of Algeria’s diplomatic mission in Niger. According to the Algerian ministry, the talks reviewed the current status of the TSGP project and evaluated the implementation of decisions taken during previous trilateral meetings involving Algeria, Niger and Nigeria.

Discussions were later expanded to include officials from Niger’s petroleum ministry and the national oil products company SONIDEP, with a particular focus on Sonatrach’s upstream activities in Niger. This included an update on exploration and appraisal work in the Kafra oil block in northern Niger, where Sonatrach holds interests.

Arkab said Algeria is ready to restart agreed exploration and development activities in Niger, adding that renewed cooperation would strengthen bilateral energy ties and support regional integration.