Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi gave the green light on Wednesday for TotalEnergies to begin development on the Cabo Delgado LNG project, which had been halted in 2021 due to rebel attacks on civilians.
TotalEnergies has a 26.5% stake in a $20 billion LNG project in northern Mozambique that has been hampered by an insurgency linked to the Islamic State that has killed thousands of people since it started in 2017.
Nyusi said at a mining and energy conference in Maputo that Mozambique planned to benefit from the growing price of liquefied natural gas (LNG) and the global shift toward greener energy sources.
“Because of the favorable working environment and security in northern Mozambique,” Nyusi noted, “Total can resume its activities at any time.”
Stephanie Platat, a TotalEnergies representative, stated that resuming the project would be contingent on “a clear vision of the costs of the project after an interruption of more than two years – which must maintain and not increase” as well as guarantees of safety and human rights in Cabo Delgado.
TotalEnergies owns just 26.5% of the project, hence the decision to restart was made by Mozambique LNG, not them. Platt said that in this event, a unanimous vote would be needed, and TotalEnergies feels that it is vital to wait until the requisite assurances have been given before even debating a restart.
TotalEnergies stated in February that situations in Cabo Delgado had “improved significantly” after African countries dispatched troops to help Mozambique’s security forces deal with the insurgency in 2021.
Energy Major Chairman and CEO Patrick Pouyanne flew to Mozambique two months ago to meet with Nyusi and review the security and humanitarian situation in Cabo Delgado.
Following Pouyanne’s visit, TotalEnergies announced the hiring of Jean-Christophe Rufin, an “expert in humanitarian action and human rights,” to perform an unbiased evaluation of the situation in the Cabo Delgado region.
The findings of this research may be used by TotalEnergies and its partners to decide whether or not to resume the project.
