Page 8 - GLNG Week 35 2022

GLNG AFRICA GLNG

BPCL expects Mozambique LNG

to resume work in H1-2023

PROJECTS THE Mozambique LNG consortium is likely to TotalEnergies declared force majeure after a
resume activity in the first half of 2023, according series of armed attacks by an Islamist group
to India’s Bharat Petroleum Corp. Ltd (BPCL), known as Ahlu Sunna Wa-Jamo (ASWJ) on
a non-operating shareholder in the French-led locations near its onshore construction site on
group. the Afungi Peninsula. The French major has
BPCL chief executive Arun Kumar Singh said said that it will resume work once Mozambican
at his company’s annual general meeting {AGM) authorities re-establish control over Cabo Del-
on August 29 that the consortium was on track to gado province, where ASWJ, which has ties to
start work again soon since security conditions Islamic State (Daesh) has been fighting since
were improving in northern Mozambique. 2017.
“Now, with the efforts of the Government of Maputo has been working with the Southern
Mozambique’s forces, supported by a regional African Development Community (SADC), a
coalition, progress is being made in improving regional organisation, and the government of
the security situation in the region, and the pro- Rwanda since last year to counter the militants.
ject will resume once the security situation is sta- They have racked up many successes, but spo-
bilised in a sustainable manner,” he stated. radic attacks have continued.
Singh did not offer any further details. TotalEnergies and its partners are slated
As of press time, TotalEnergies had not com- to extract gas from Area 1, which lies offshore
mented on his statements about a return to work Mozambique within the Rovuma basin. They
in the first half of 2023. Patrick Pouyanné, the will process the gas at an LNG plant and onshore
French major’s CEO, had said in February that complex on the Afungi Peninsula. This facility
his company might need a year before resuming will eventually have two production trains, each
construction but declined to say whether any with a capacity of 6.44mn tonnes per year (tpy).
particular date had been targeted for a restart. The French major serves as operator of the
Pouyanné also stressed that the consortium’s Mozambique LNG consortium through its sub-
schedule would hinge on security conditions sidiary Total E&P Mozambique Area 1, which
in the area surrounding its construction site. holds a 26.5% stake. The remaining equity in the
“There is no pressure for us to exit out of force consortium is split between two Japanese com-
majeure. We know that when we will say, ‘Yes, we panies, Mitsui and Japan Oil, Gas and Metals
can come back,’ it will take six months really to National Corp. (JOGMEC), which have a com-
start up again. But again, my priority, it’s a matter bined stake of 20%; Mozambique’s national oil
of sustainability of that and human rights. And company (NOC) ENH, with 15%; BPCL, with
so we’ll not relaunch the project as long as I see 10%; ONGC Videsh (India), with 10%; Beas
photos from refugee camps around the site,” he Rovuma Energy Mozambique (a 60:40 joint
remarked. venture between ONGC Videsh and Oil India
The Mozambique LNG project has been Ltd, or OIL), with 10%; and PTTEP (Thailand),
on hold since March 2021, when its operator with 8.5%.™

P8 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 35 02•September•2022