Page 6 - AfrOil Week 12 2023

AfrOil COMMENTARY AfrOil

Rendering of Rovuma LNG onshore facility (Image: Galp)
ExxonMobil considers

expanding Rovuma LNG

The US super-major is looking into the possibility of raising the stalled

Mozambican project’s production capacity from 15.2mn tpy to 18mn tpy

EXXONMOBIL (US) appears to be contem- attacks in the region that forced Mozambique
plating restarting the Rovuma LNG project in LNG, a separate consortium led by TotalEner-
WHAT: the restive Cabo Delgado Province in north- gies (France), to declare force majeure. However,
ExxonMobil is looking into ern Mozambique. The company has called for the security situation has now improved slightly,
the possibility of building expressions of interest (EoIs) to design and con- following the deployment of foreign peacekeep-
a larger onshore plant. struct its LNG plant, according to a statement ing forces to the region.
published in the Mozambican newspaper O Pais At these signs of optimism, TotalEner-
WHY: on March 17. gies announced the launch of an independent
Signs of improving The project was first approved by the govern- mission to investigate the humanitarian and
stability in Cabo Delgado ment of Mozambique in June 2019. Initial plans security situation. It also indicated that it was
may be leading France’s called for the Rovuma LNG consortium would considering restarting its LNG project, and now
TotalEnergies to resume
work at its own Mozam- produce, liquefy and market natural gas from ExxonMobil has followed suit. Additionally, the
bique LNG project. three reservoirs of the Mamba complex, a sec- US giant is planning for a larger onshore facility
tion of the Area 4 block in the offshore Rovuma capable of turning out 18mn tpy, a considerable
WHAT NEXT: basin. The group aimed to build a plant with two increase from its original plan.
Since no FID has been liquefaction trains and a total nameplate capac- According to the statement in O Pais, Exx-
taken yet, Rovuma LNG ity of 15.2mn tonnes per year (tpy). onMobil is seeking a contractor for front-end
could not start producing The Rovuma LNG project has been stalled engineering and design (FEED) work on the
gas before 2027. since spring 2021 as a result of the terrorist Rovuma LNG project.

P6 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 12 23•March•2023