TotalEnergies has delayed its $20bn LNG project in Mozambique due to security and political issues, as reported by Ian Johnston, Monica Mark, and David Pilling of the Financial Times. They write:
TotalEnergies has further delayed its troubled $20bn liquefied natural gas project in Mozambique as security concerns and political uncertainty dog one of Africaโs biggest energy investments.
The LNG development, which has the potential to transform Mozambiqueโs economy, was launched in 2020. It was Africaโs largest foreign direct investment project when it was announced.
But the company activated a contractual get-out, known as force majeure, in 2021 after Islamist insurgents killed dozens of people including foreign workers. The attack was near a company site, where gas was planned to be converted into liquid, in Mozambiqueโs northern Cabo Delgado province.
Plans to restart the project by the end of 2024 have slipped after violence flared following Octoberโs disputed presidential election, putting at risk a goal to begin production in 2029. […]
Cabo Delgado, on Mozambiqueโs Indian Ocean coast, is ideally located to meet growing demand for LNG in Asian markets โas opposed to Atlantic-facing projectsโ, said James Waddell, an analyst at Energy Aspects.
โThis project remains profitable because there is a portfolio, in particular, of LNG sales, which is quite attractive,โ Pouyannรฉ said in October.
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