Eni signs second floating LNG unit off the coast of Mozambique
The Italian energy company Eni, along with its partners, signed off on a project on Thursday to build a floating platform for liquefied gas, Coral North, in the waters of Mozambique. This will make that country Africa's top LNG producer.
In the capital of Southern Africa, Maputo, a signing ceremony attended by Mozambique's President Daniel Chapo, Eni Chief Executive Claudio Descalzi and other officials took place at an upmarket hotel.
Once operational, the new unit will be a copy of Coral South, which is a sister platform in the Rovuma basin that began exporting LNG to Europe in 2022. This will double Mozambique’s annual output of LNG to more than 7 million tonnes.
Descalzi, at the ceremony, said that "Coral North" would more than double benefits to the country. It is expected to generate $23 Billion in tax revenue, create more jobs, increase the number of national suppliers, and award $3 Billion in contracts to local businesses.
He said that the project will begin operations in 2028.
Coral North, which is located far out in the ocean, has avoided the difficulties faced by TotalEnergies, Exxon Mobil and others whose LNG terminals are being developed onshore, but have been delayed over the years due to security concerns related to an Islamist terrorism.
TotalEnergies will lift the force majeure on its $20 billion facility soon, and ExxonMobil will make its final investment decision in 2019. However, the ongoing attacks in the restive northern region remain a cause for concern, despite the deployment by Rwandan forces to fight the insurgency.
Samir Gadio said that the 2031 Eurobond of Mozambique gained in value this week as investors expected that Eni will agree to continue with Coral North, and that TotalEnergies will soon resume its construction project.
Coral North is a joint-venture between Eni (50%), China National Petroleum Company (80%), Korea Gas Corporation (10%), Mozambican national oil company ENH (10) and ADNOC subsidiary XRG (10%). (Reporting and writing by Custodio Cssa, Manuel Mucari and Wendell Roelf. Editing and proofreading by Alexander Winning and Susan Fenton.
(source: Reuters)
