Page 14 - GLNG Week 02 2021

GLNG AFRICA GLNG

Analyst: LNG construction sites

key to fighting in Mozambique

POLICY CONSTRUCTION sites for onshore facilities Meanwhile, Raymakers continued, Mozam-
related to a large-scale LNG project appear to be bique’s government has not yet formulated a
a focal point of the campaign by Islamist insur- comprehensive strategy for pushing the insur-
gents to seize control of Mozambique’s northern gents back. And since President Filipe Nyusi has
Cabo Delgado Province, according to a repre- indicated that he is open to foreign assistance,
sentative of the Verisk Maplecroft consultancy. but not in the form of “boots on the ground,”
Alexandre Raymakers, a senior Africa analyst attempts to combat ASWJ are likely to be
for the consultancy, commented earlier this week time-consuming, he said.
that troops affiliated with Ahlu Sunna Wa-Jamo In the meantime, he remarked, “the civilian
(ASWJ) were working to tie Mozambican troops population is bearing the brunt” of the fighting in
down in areas near the LNG construction sites northern Mozambique. Civilians are also being
on the Afungi Peninsula. Even though these forced to pay taxes to ASWJ to fund the insur-
high-value sites are already strongly defended, gents, he noted.
the armed forces, known as Forças Armadas de France’s Total is currently working to build an
Defesa de Moçambique (FADM), are working to onshore natural gas liquefaction plant and asso-
keep them out of the insurgents’ hands, he said. ciated facilities on the Afungi Peninsula for the
As a result, he commented, ASWJ’s other Mozambique LNG project. The complex will use
units have been able to step up their efforts to take gas from an offshore block known as Area 1 to
control of larger towns in Cabo Delgado. Since produce LNG for export. The French company
most FADM troops are not in those towns, the puts the total cost of this project at $20bn and has
Islamist group has been able to “create a narrative already arranged to cover most of this sum with
that the government can’t defend its own people,” $14.9bn in loans from commercial and develop-
he was quoted as saying by The Africa Report. ment banks.™

Senegal pushes start date for GTA

gas production back to 2023

PERFORMANCE SENEGAL’S Oil Minister Sophie Gladima increase domestic electricity supplies.
revealed last week that investors in the Grand Gladima, for her part, went on to say that
Tortue/Ahmeyim (GTA) project had pushed the Senegal’s government saw the country’s offshore
start date for natural gas production back to 2023. oil and gas fields as a resource to support domes-
BP (UK) and Kosmos Energy (US) had said tic development and not as a means of gaining
previously that they hoped to bring this ultra-deep- entry to industry groups such as OPEC. “Any
water offshore block, which straddles the mari- talk of joining any international organisation or
time border between Mauritania and Senegal, on not is premature,” she said. “Senegal is focused
stream in 2022. However, Gladima told Bloomb- on the development of its oil projects to meet its
erg that the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic objective of starting production from 2023.”
had put the GTA project behind schedule. The West African state wants to use its hydro-
“The start of the pandemic coincided with a carbons “to build an economy that’s connected
key period corresponding to the development of and competitive,” she added. To this end, it is
the oil and gas fields,” she told the news agency. working to reduce domestic electricity prices,
“Many development-related activities – such as expand industrialisation initiatives and maxim-
the mobilisation of resources and people, the ise local content, she said.
construction phases on various sites around the BP and Kosmos Energy have said they intend
world and installations – were affected.” to use the GTA block to support an LNG project.
The minister did not comment further on To this end, they have arranged for Bermuda-reg-
the reasons for the postponement. Bloomberg istered Golar LNG to convert the Gimi LNG
noted that the delay was likely to affect Sen- tanker into a floating gas liquefaction plant, known
egal’s economy, as the government had been as an FLNG, with a production capacity of 2.5mn
hoping to start collecting revenues from gas tonnes per year (tpy). The FLNG unit will process
sales in 2022, and to increase the time needed gas extracted from the block by a floating produc-
to launch gas-to-power schemes designed to tion, storage and off-loading (FPSO) vessel.™

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