(Ecofin Agency) - Morocco, the biggest importer of energy in the Middle East and North Africa, is set to select three liquefied natural gas (LNG) providers as part of aims to diversify its energy mix, the country’s energy minister said.

“In two weeks, we will evaluate the bids and we will make a decision,” said Abdelkader Amara. “Most probably we will have three providers, part of them will be countries and another part will be companies. We will try to make a mix.”

Morocco has held talks with Russia, the US and Qatar about importing LNG under long-term plans. LNG is gas cooled to a liquid to be transported by ships.

The country is currently talking to Shell and other international companies as part of plans to import two million tonnes of LNG in the first four-year phase starting 2020 or 2021, Amara said adding that Morocco envisages another 2 million tonnes of LNG imports, in the phase 2.

About 70 to 80 % of the LNG will be imported under long-term contracts and the rest from the spot market.

Morocco plans to spend more than $4.5 billion on building an LNG terminal at the industrial hub of Jorf Lasfar on the Atlantic coast, pipelines and a 2.4 gigawatts power plant. The private sector will finance the project under a power purchase agreement, the minister said.

At present, Morocco imports 640 million cubic metres of gas a year from neighbouring Algeria under a 10-year contract signed in 2011. The gas flows through a pipeline that transverses northern Morocco and through which Algeria exports gas to Spain. The National reports.