Mozambique Natural Gas Megaproject Hangs on TotalEnergies’ Decision Amid Security Concerns
Mozambican President Daniel Chapo emphasized that the resumption of the country’s natural gas project, halted since 2021 due to terrorist attacks, depends on TotalEnergies, the project’s lead investor.
“The resumption depends on who is leading the project, and at the moment, that is Total,” President Chapo said during a meeting with the president of the Japanese multinational Mitsui in Yokohama, host city of the 9th Tokyo International Conference for Africa’s Development (TICAD 9).
Mozambique has three approved projects to develop natural gas reserves in the Rovuma Basin, among the world’s largest, off the coast of Cabo Delgado.
TotalEnergies leads the Area 1 consortium, currently developing a plant in Afungi, near Palma, for the production and export of natural gas.
President Chapo noted that while it is in the interest of both Mitsui—which holds a 20% stake—and the Mozambican government to restart the project, the decision rests with TotalEnergies.
“We are all working at full speed to see if, at any time, the project can be resumed. This project is subject to a force majeure clause,” he added.
In July, the Mozambican government confirmed that conditions for restarting the LNG megaproject were in place following a meeting between President Chapo and TotalEnergies CEO Patrick Pouyanné.
Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy, Estêvão Pale, stated, “At the government level, all conditions are being created to allow investors to restart activities as quickly as possible.”
TotalEnergies has previously indicated the possibility of resuming the $20 billion (€17.3 billion) project by August, with subcontractors preparing to return to the Afungi Peninsula.
The company holds a 26.5% stake, with production primarily targeted at Asian markets.
President Chapo has repeatedly called for the lifting of the force majeure clause to move the project forward, which anticipates an annual LNG production of 13.12 million tons.
Since October 2017, Cabo Delgado has faced an armed insurgency, with attacks linked to extremist groups associated with Islamic State, displacing over a million people.
In 2024 alone, 349 fatalities were reported, marking a 36% increase from the previous year, according to the Africa Center for Strategic Studies, a U.S. Department of Defense-affiliated research institution.
