A security firm linked to Rwanda’s ruling party has been contracted to safeguard TotalEnergies’ $20 billion liquefied natural gas (LNG) project in Mozambique, marking a significant expansion of Rwanda’s commercial interests in the region.
According to The Financial Times, Isco Segurança—a joint venture between Rwanda’s Isco Global Limited and a local Mozambican company—is providing unarmed security services for the project in Cabo Delgado province.
This development follows an Islamist insurgency attack in Palma in 2021, which led TotalEnergies to declare force majeure and halt operations.
Since then, Rwanda has deployed over 4,000 troops to the region under an agreement between Mozambique’s President Filipe Nyusi and Rwandan President Paul Kagame.
However, the cost of this deployment, estimated to be in the hundreds of millions of dollars, has not been disclosed by either leader.
Rwanda, led by Kagame since 2000, has increasingly asserted its presence in Africa through military and economic engagements.
Critics have raised concerns that Rwanda’s military involvement is aimed at advancing its economic interests, particularly through the activities of Rwandan companies in Mozambique.
Piers Pigou, head of the southern Africa program at the Institute for Security Studies, expressed skepticism about the arrangements between Maputo and Kigali, citing a lack of transparency and speculating about potential concessions and contracts related to the LNG project.
Isco Global, part of Intersec Security Company founded in 1995 by the Rwandan Patriotic Front, has established a presence in Mozambique since 2021.
Intersec is a subsidiary of Crystal Ventures, a major investment group linked to the ruling party. The Financial Times reports that TotalEnergies has declined to comment on Isco Segurança’s ownership but confirmed that the company was selected through a rigorous tender process.
Additionally, TotalEnergies is working with Radarscape—a company linked to Crystal Ventures’ international arm, Macefield Ventures—to build a solar plant for the LNG project.
Both Isco Segurança and Radarscape underwent due diligence checks before being contracted.
TotalEnergies has stated that it did not organize or fund Rwanda’s military deployment but has strengthened its ties with Rwanda in recent years.
This includes a cooperation agreement signed with President Kagame in January 2022 to explore renewable energy projects in Rwanda.
Rwanda’s growing influence in Africa, combined with its strategic military deployments and commercial ventures, underscores its expanding role in regional and global energy markets.
