ExxonMobil Lifts Force Majeure on Rovuma LNG, Paving the Way for 2025 FID Target
ExxonMobil has officially lifted the force majeure declaration on the 18-million-metric-ton-per-year Rovuma LNG export project in Mozambique, the company told Platts on Nov. 20.
“The lifting of FM allows us to stay on track with our Rovuma LNG project,” a company spokesperson said. “We are working with our partners and the government of Mozambique to ensure the safety of our people and facilities, as we look to develop a world-class LNG project that can help drive economic growth.”
Force majeure was originally declared in April 2021 after a sharp deterioration in the security situation in northern Mozambique.
According to S&P Global Energy CERA, the decision reflected concerns surrounding escalating violence in Cabo Delgado province.
However, security conditions have “improved dramatically,” ExxonMobil CEO Darren Woods said during the company’s third-quarter earnings call on Oct. 31.
Kelli Krasity, associate director of global LNG research at CERA, said lifting force majeure is “an expected but necessary step for Rovuma LNG to remobilize toward its goal of reaching FID early next year, although there are still other hurdles remaining that could delay the project beyond that target.”
ExxonMobil operates the Rovuma LNG project with a 25% stake. Other partners include Eni (25%), China National Petroleum Corp. (20%), Korea Gas Corp. (10%), Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. (10%), and Mozambique’s state energy company ENH (10%).
Momentum Builds Across Mozambique’s LNG Sector
Mozambique is emerging as a significant future LNG supplier, supported by multiple large-scale developments.
The Rovuma decision follows a similar move by TotalEnergies, which lifted force majeure less than a month earlier on its 13.1-million-metric-ton-per-year Mozambique LNG project—also halted in April 2021. TotalEnergies CEO Patrick Pouyanné said the company is targeting a 2029 startup.
Mozambique began exporting LNG in 2022 through the Eni-operated Coral South floating LNG facility, which has a capacity of 3.4 million metric tons per year.
In October, Eni reached a final investment decision on Coral North, its second FLNG project offshore Cabo Delgado. The 3.6-million-metric-ton-per-year unit is scheduled to start production in 2028.
The renewed activity comes as Asian LNG prices remain relatively subdued. Platts assessed the JKM benchmark for Northeast Asia deliveries at $11.674/MMBtu on Nov. 20—up 1.6% day over day but still 21% below the $14.692/MMBtu level recorded one year earlier.
