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Steps are being made towards the construction of a £7.4 billion underwater tunnel connecting Europe to Africa. Discussions about a crossing began in 1979 when Spain and Moroccoappointed a joint committee to investigate the feasibility of the project.

Conversations kicked off again in 2021 when it was reported that the UK and Morocco would discuss building the crossing between Gibraltar and Tangiers. Now, a feasibility study by German tunnelexperts Herrenknecht has found that drilling the tunnel is "technically viable". A blueprint will be developed by Spanish consultancy firm Ineco by 2027, with government approval hoped for in the same year. The tunnelwill be 26 miles long, with 17 miles underwater, with a maximum depth of 420m. This is far deeper than the Channel Tunnel, which is just 74m under sea level.

The tunnel would be revolutionary, meaning goods can be transported between Europe and Africa faster and cheaper. The journey from Madrid to Casablanca would go from 12 hours (car and ferry) to just five and a half (train).

There are similar connections across wider passages such as the 30-mile Channel Tunnel between England and France and the 10-mile Oresund Bridge between Denmark and Sweden.

The TikToker GeoGlobeTales said that the challenges with the Strait of Gibraltar is that it is very deep, at over 900 metres with strong currents that would make a bridge "highly unstable".

The bottom of the strait is also made of hard rock, making it difficult to drill a tunnel. In contrast, the Channel Tunnel is only about 75 metres from the surface.

The strait is also a busy shipping lane and so any bridge or tunnel would need to be built in a way that avoids affecting trade routes between the Mediterranean and the Atlantic.

Any projects would be affected by the seismic activity of the area, which makes a potential structure more risky.