A 120-km natural gas pipeline is set to be constructed in Morocco. This is after the nation’s Ministry of Energy gave British industrial company Sound Energy approval for the project development.
According to reports, the project had passed environmental impact assessment (EIA) done by the ministry and is only waiting to proceed pending negotiations with the Ministry of the Interior.
The pipeline project dubbed Tendrara Export Pipeline will cross the Matarka village in the province of Figuig in eastern Morocco and Jerada. It is expected connect the proposed gas treatment plant and compression station (CPF) to the Gazoduc Maghreb Europe pipeline (GME). The Maghreb Europe pipeline runs from Western Algeria, through Morocco, to Southern Spain.
The project will be under Build-Own-Operate-Transfer terms. The company is also in talks with the Ministry of the Interior to obtain rights for the pipeline through a long-term lease agreement for a 50 [meter] wide corridor along the entire 120 km length.
Upon completion the gas project is projected to meet 30% of the country’s oil demands. National production of hydrocarbons in Morocco is expected to reach 96 million cubic meters of natural gas and 4,300 tons of condensate by the end of 2020. According to the Moroccan Minister of Energy, Minerals, and Environment, Aziz Rabbah, by the end of 2020, the investment in hydrocarbon exploration will be around US $82.7m.
Morocco is a net natural gas importer, and its production is much less than domestic consumption. Morocco produced 3.1 billion cubic feet (Bcf) in 2018, and the country consumed 44 Bcf. A portion of the Maghreb-Europe Pipeline (also known as the Pedro Duran Farell pipeline), which transports natural gas between Algeria and Spain, passes through Morocco.
