Mozambique LNG construction resumes

Construction at the $20bn Mozambique LNG project is set to resume after the government beefed up security at the site, French operator Total reported on March 24.

Following attacks by insurgents in the area, Total withdrew most of its workforce from the construction site in Afungi in January.

"Total and the government of Mozambique have worked together to define and implement an action plan with the objective of reinforcing, in a sustained manner, the security of the Afungi site and of the surrounding area and neighbouring villages," the oil major said in a statement today.

The government has declared all land within a 25 km perimeter of the project as a special security area. Other measures such as the reinforcement of security infrastructure and the strengthening of Mozambique's security forces have also been implemented. 

The remobilisation of the workforce and the resumption of construction will take place gradually, Total said. The company confirmed that Mozambique LNG was still on track for first gas in 2024.

Insurgents now linked to Islamic State have been operating in gas-rich northern Mozambique since 2017, but over the past year have stepped up the frequency and severity of their attacks, at times seizing entire towns. In one strike in July last year, at least eight workers employed by a contractor working on Mozambique LNG were ambushed and killed. Total entered into a security pact with Mozambique's government the following month. There was fierce fighting between insurgents and government forces within 20 km of the project site in December.

Mozambique LNG aims to produce up to 13.1mn metric tons/yr of LNG from the Golfinho and Atum gas fields in Mozambique's Offshore Area 1 concession.