French giant Total and Russian gas monopoly Gazprom are interested in taking part in the multi-billion dollar Trans-Sahara Pipeline project, which would carry Nigerian gas to Europe via Sahara Desert , company executives said today.

The project, with capital costs estimated at $10 billion for the pipeline and $3 billion for gathering centres, would send up to 30 billion cubic metres a year of gas to Europe via a 4128 kilometre pipeline from Nigeria via Niger and Algeria.

"Total believes this is a long term strategic diversification for Nigeria, which is quite interesting," Reuters quoted Guy Maurice, managing director of Total exploration and production in Nigeria, telling an industry conference in Abuja.

"I take this opportunity to mention publicly that Total is ready to become involved in this project," he said.

The European Union, which relies on Russia for about 40% of its gas and a third of its oil, has said the project could help diversify its energy sources.

Gazprom , which said earlier it hoped to sign an oil and gas exploration deal worth $2.5 billion with Nigeria next month, repeated its interest in the project and said it would be ready to work with Total.

"We are also interested ... Gas projects in the Trans-Sahara Pipeline give us an opportunity to showcase our experience," said Vladimir Ilyanin, head of Gazprom Nigeria.

"We've worked with Total on many other projects so I don't see any reason why we wouldn't be able to work with them on this one," he said.

The heads of state-run NIgeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and Algeria's Sonatrach met in Abuja last week to discuss the Trans-Sahara Pipeline project, which has been on the drawing board for years.

"There is no question that the project is attracting the interest not only of potential customers but also project participants and financiers," NNPC group managing director Mohammed Barkindo said.

He said it was important for Nigeria and Algeria to finalise a memorandum of understanding on the project so as to demonstrate to international investors the commitment of the two governments to seeing the project through.

"There is the need to speed up the process and ratify it fast. This would give the two countries the opportunity to fully benefit from the investment," Sonatrach's chief executive Mohamed Meziane said after last week's meeting.

Algeria also last month discussed with the Netherlands a partnership involving Shell in the project.

Nigeria has estimated natural gas reserves of 180 trillion cubic feet, the seventh largest in the world. Its liquefied natural gas company Nigeria LNG says it already provides 10% of world supply, much of it to Europe and North America.

But the West African country has been unable to develop its gas industry to anywhere near its full potential because of a lack of funds and of a clear regulatory environment.

Barkindo told the oil and gas conference in Abuja that US geological survey data suggested Nigeria could have potential gas reserves of 600 Tcf.

He said Nigeria's proven reserves had all been discovered during the exploration for oil and that there had not been enough dedicated exploration for gas.

Source: Upstream