Madrid, Oct 21 (IANS): A gas pipeline is to be built connecting Iberia to France and the rest of Europe, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has confirmed.

Spain, France and Portugal have agreed to cooperate on the project, Sanchez was quoted as saying by Xinhua news agency.

Speaking on his return to Spain on Thursday after attending an EU summit on the energy crisis, Sanchez said that the pipeline will hugely increase the volume of the two existing links between Spain and France. It will also help to transport green hydrogen and gas during the transition period Europe needs until it increases its capacity for renewables.

The "Green Energy Corridor" will connect Barcelona to Marseilles in southern France. It replaces the "MidCat" scheme, which was dropped in 2019 due to concerns over costs and regulations.

The ongoing energy crisis, caused by the conflict in Ukraine and uncertainties over supplies from Russia, has led to the revival of plans to ship gas through Portugal and Spain (which is connected by pipeline to Algeria).

Spain has spent several months pushing for the project, which is also supported by Germany. As well as its Algerian pipeline, Spain also has a high capacity for converting liquid natural gas (LNG), with 6 LNG terminals.