Morocco is courting international lenders, including the Export-Import Bank of the United States and the World Bank, to help fund a proposed $26 billion gas pipeline along the West African coast, Rabat’s top diplomat to the U.S. said. The African Atlantic Gas Pipeline aims to link natural gas deposits in West African nations—including Nigeria, Senegal, and Mauritania—to the existing Maghreb-Europe Gas Pipeline connecting Morocco to Spain. A spokesperson for the U.S. Exim Bank confirmed early-stage talks regarding the proposed development, while the World Bank declined to comment. Escalating regional conflict in the Middle East has pushed European natural gas prices to their longest daily gain streak in eight years, raising fears over winter reserve levels. The mega-project joins several large-scale energy initiatives across the continent, including Algeria’s planned Trans-Sahara gas pipeline, a planned crude refinery in Kenya backed by Nigerian investor Aliko Dangote, and major offshore gas developments in Mozambique.