Algerian-Nigerian cooperation is witnessing a new revival, with the return of the trans-Saharan gas pipeline project to the forefront, through field steps aimed at moving from statements to implementation. Relations between the two neighbors witnessed a serious deterioration that reached a rift last year, following the incident of destroying the financial process on the border with Algeria, and Niamey’s alignment with Bamako in denouncing the incident, against the “northern neighbour.”
In this context, the Algerian Minister of State in charge of Hydrocarbons, Mohamed Arkab, discussed in Niamey with the Nigerien authorities the advancement of the project, and agreed to begin topographical surveys and environmental and geotechnical studies of the route.
This step has dimensions that go beyond the energy aspect, as Algeria seeks to strengthen its position as a transit country and consolidate its economic presence in the Sahel region, in conjunction with the intensification of competition over projects to transport Nigerian gas to Europe, especially the Nigerian-Moroccan project.
Last Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, the Algerian Minister in charge of Hydrocarbons discussed with the Nigerien authorities the implementation of the project that is supposed to transport Nigerian gas to Europe via Niger and Algeria, according to what the ministry stated in its latest statements.
What is new announced this time is tangible, as the Nigerian side is supposed to enter the stage of topographical elevation of the line’s route, in parallel with conducting environmental and geotechnical studies. Last June, the Sonatrach Fuel Complex announced the start of work in the Algerian part.
On the fourth of the same month, the hydrocarbons ministers of Algeria, Niger, and Nigeria officially announced the start of work on the trans-Saharan gas pipeline project from Adrar in the far south of the country. But since then, the project has had difficulty getting off the ground.
According to sources in the energy sector, Algeria is seeking to give an actual character to a project that has been talked about for years. She pointed out that “the bet is also related to strengthening its position as a gas transit country and consolidating its economic influence in the Sahel region.” However, one must be careful not to anticipate the pace of work.”
According to the same sources, between the topographic lift and the entry into service of a gas pipeline extending for thousands of kilometers, there is a very large distance. Also, financing, security of the line's route, political stability in the region, technical studies, and the commitments of various partners are all obstacles that do not disappear simply because the project returns to official statements.
The issue has another aspect related to the internal situation in Niger. Niamey is witnessing a profound rearrangement of its foreign relations and its energy sector, especially after the withdrawal of the uranium exploitation license from the French company Areva since May 2025. On the other hand, Algeria is trying to maintain its influence in a region whose balances have become much more unstable.
In light of the growing movements of Russia, Morocco, and Turkey in the region, and their efforts to expand their influence, Algerian diplomacy faces an increasing challenge to maintain its position and role in the Sahel, especially with regard to a strategic project the size of the trans-Saharan gas pipeline.
Last July, leaders of West African countries officially gave their approval to the transatlantic gas pipeline project between Nigeria and Morocco. Algeria's western neighbor is working relentlessly to pass the valuable gas pipeline through its territory. According to a report broadcast by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), the huge gas pipeline, 6,000 kilometers long, will extend along the Atlantic coast of 14 African countries, transporting Nigerian gas to Morocco, before connecting to the existing European gas network via Spain.
In the assessment of observers of this project, which has economic and geostrategic dimensions, the trans-Saharan gas pipeline project represents a major energy project. But it also represents a test of Algeria's ability to transform its African ambitions into tangible economic achievements.
This development comes at a time when Niamey is stressing, at the highest level, the importance of Algerian support in its path in recent years, which was expressed by Nigerien Prime Minister Ali Lamine Zeine, before the United Nations General Assembly, when he praised, last Thursday, Algeria’s support for his country, in addition to the support of the “Coalition of Sahel States,” which enabled his country to “stay afloat.”
He said: “Three years ago, some expected Niger to collapse under the weight of sanctions and isolation. Today, Niger is standing on its feet,” and he was referring to the coup that the country witnessed on July 26, 2023.
The Nigerian Prime Minister added: “Niger is standing on its feet because its people refused to bow down... and it is standing because it found within the Confederation of Sahel countries a family and solidarity, a family in every African sense of the word.”
Then he touched on cooperation with Algeria, explaining that “the brotherly and neighboring country chose to accompany Niger through a major investment in exploiting its natural resources, and through continuous support for its defense system.” He added: “With Algeria, we are also working on dynamic cooperation in the fields of health, education, energy, water and agriculture, not to mention structural projects such as the triple gas pipeline and the trans-Saharan road,” noting that his country “has regained control over its internal wealth and its word.”
Algeria and Niger restored their diplomatic relations last February, after several months of estrangement. Since then, the two countries have accelerated their cooperation in several areas, especially energy and defence.
At the end of August, Algeria rushed to help Niger after a failed coup attempt, sending four fighter jets to Niamey accompanied by a plane to refuel.
In a new executive step in its nuclear project, Egypt completed the installation of the “bottom plate” (reactor core) for the well of Unit Three of the “Dabaa Reactor” in the northwest of the country.
The Nuclear Power Plants Authority confirmed the success of installing the bottom plate of the reactor well for the third nuclear unit, in coordination with the Russian general contractor, Atomstroyexport.
The Authority stated in a statement on Saturday that the bottom plate of the reactor well represents “the link between the well equipment and the reactor pressure vessel, and ensures that the reactor pressure vessel is accurately aligned on its vertical axis. It also plays a major role in completing the reactor well system, as it comes within a precise installation sequence; The installation of the reactor pressure vessel in this model is preceded by the installation of the reactor core trap, the pouring of concrete into the support and stabilization structures, and then the installation of dry protection and thermal insulation for the cylindrical part of the vessel.
According to the Authority, the installation of the bottom plate of the reactor well paves the way for the most important event, which is “the installation of the reactor pressure vessel for the third nuclear unit, which is about 13 meters long, 4.5 meters in diameter, and weighs 320 tons.”
On November 19, 2015, Cairo and Moscow signed a cooperation agreement to establish the “Dabaa” station at a cost of $25 billion. Russia provided a soft government loan to Egypt, and in December 2017, the two countries signed final agreements to build the station.
The “Dabaa Plant” includes 4 nuclear reactors with a total capacity of 4,800 megawatts, 1,200 megawatts for each reactor. The first nuclear reactor is scheduled to begin operating in 2028, and then the other reactors will operate successively in 2030, according to the Egyptian Ministry of Electricity.
The Nuclear Power Plants Authority confirmed, on Saturday, that the “bottom plate” of the reactor well of the third nuclear unit at the Dabaa station is one of the essential elements in the equipment of the reactor well for the advanced Russian third-generation pressurized water reactors, model (VVER-1200), as its installation comes after the completion of the “dry protection installation” last August, to be one of the last installation steps in preparation for installing the reactor pressure vessel in its design position.
Professor of Energy Engineering at the American University in Cairo, Gamal Al-Qalioubi, explains the importance of installing the “bottom plate” and the following executive and technical steps. He tells Asharq Al-Awsat: “The installation of the bottom plate, which is scientifically called (the reactor core), is the beginning of the fifth phase in the Dabaa project, which will include very precise steps and operations to reach trial operation.”
Al-Qalioubi confirms that “the most prominent steps of the current fifth stage are connecting the mechanical parts of the power transformers, cold testing, industrial and nuclear safety tests, tests of alarm and extinguishing devices, complete installation of the upper mechanical part, operation on hot water, and trial operation, which is followed by the reactor entering the actual production stage.”
The “Nuclear Stations” confirmed in its statement, on Saturday, that the installation of the “bottom plate” reflects “commitment to the project schedule and to the highest standards of quality and safety,” explaining that “all work is carried out in accordance with the highest regulatory standards applied by the Nuclear and Radiological Regulatory Authority through its inspectors residing at the nuclear station site.”
In late August, Egypt and Russia agreed to “expand the nuclear project” by building two additional units at the reactor in the Dabaa area.
The professor of energy engineering pointed out that the Egyptian-Russian agreement does not only include the transfer of nuclear technology, but also “the localization of the nuclear plant industry, and the training of Egyptian cadres of nuclear scientists and engineers on third-generation nuclear reactor technology, operation, maintenance, and safety parameters.”
The sharp decline in the value of the Libyan dinar against the dollar on the “black market” has brought back the discussion of liberalizing the exchange rate and “floating the currency” to the forefront of economic interest in Libya, amid fears and warnings of possible repercussions on the prices of goods and services and the purchasing power of citizens.
The revival of talk about “floating” coincided with a jump in the price of the dollar in the “parallel market” to about 9.80 dinars in the middle of last week, before it fell to 9.61 dinars at the end of it, while the gap between the official and parallel prices exceeds 3 dinars, which increases the cost of imports and imposes additional pressure on the prices of goods in the markets.
The current debate taking place in local media and across social media platforms is not related to a decision issued to float the dinar, but rather to the extent of the feasibility of presenting it in the future as part of options for addressing the exchange rate crisis, in addition to rationalizing public spending, liquidity management, and financial reform.
In a statement to Asharq Al-Awsat, a member of the “Planning and Finance Committee” in the Libyan House of Representatives, Fahmi Al-Tawati, believes that floating the dinar “cannot be implemented, in light of the political and institutional division that the country is witnessing, and the absence of cohesive executive institutions.” He is reassured that the House of Representatives and the Planning and Finance Committee “did not discuss any proposals regarding floating the currency.”
Touati considers that “the transition to a more flexible exchange rate system requires integrated economic and financial reforms, and that any step of this kind requires a social protection network and measures that limit its repercussions on purchasing power and living standards, even in countries that enjoy institutional stability.”
These discussions come at a time when Libyans face increasing living pressures as a result of rising prices for goods and services. The latest official government data showed an increase in the general consumer price index last August by 14.3 percent, compared to the same month in 2025, according to the Department of Statistics and Census.
Fears have not subsided despite the announcement by the Governor of the Central Bank of Libya, Mohamed Naji Issa, last Thursday, of work to contain the rise in the exchange rate, limit its repercussions on the prices of goods and services, and control inflation, reassuring that “raising the value of the dinar represents a primary goal for the bank during the next stage.”
Among those who were cautious about the full float was banking expert Noman Al-Buri, who believes that “the free float of the national currency will not address economic imbalances without controlling government spending,” and calls for “gradual liberalization within a financial reform that includes unifying the budget, controlling wages, and support, in addition to protecting the low-income.”
Experts, including Professor of Economics at the University of Misrata, Mukhtar Al-Jadid, focus on “the potential repercussions of any change in the exchange rate system on citizens,” considering, in a Facebook post, that the issue “is not only related to changing the mechanism for determining the exchange rate, but rather the ability of Libyans to bear additional economic burdens.”
He warns that “floating the currency means giving the government a blank check and an account with an open balance from which it can dispose of as it wishes,” adding: “This is the fate of an entire people that cannot be played with in this way.”
Liberalizing the exchange rate indicates a move towards a more flexible exchange rate system, where the value of the currency is determined to a greater extent according to supply and demand, with the possibility of the Central Bank intervening when needed to reduce sharp fluctuations. As for free floating, the determination of the exchange rate is left more to market mechanisms, with limited intervention by the monetary authorities.
In another aspect of the potential repercussions, the liberalization of the exchange rate as well as the free float have extremely negative repercussions on import operations. These are warnings previously issued by the professor of economics at the University of Benghazi, Attia Al-Fitouri, in light of the country’s reliance to a large degree on the “Central Bank of Libya” to provide foreign exchange.
Al-Fitouri points out, in a post on Facebook, “The absence of a competitive market for foreign exchange, and the absence of a forward market that allows importers to hedge against exchange rate fluctuations, may make opening documentary credits less regular, with potential repercussions on the availability of goods and their prices.”
“Documentary Credits” are a mechanism through which the Central Bank of Libya grants foreign currency (the dollar) to merchants and companies at a low official price compared to the parallel price on the black market, with the aim of importing basic goods and alleviating living burdens.
