Africa-Press – Mozambique. Cabo Delgado business owners fear that security restrictions will hinder the supply of local services to TotalEnergies’ mega natural gas project, but the governor of the Mozambican province says there is no reason for concern.
“The supply will be by air and sea. If it is by air, is the local private sector, particularly in Cabo Delgado province, able to transport its goods by air and by sea?” asked Mamudo Irache, president of the province’s business council, in statements to Lusa.
“We are afraid of being left out of the project,” he said, while nevertheless noting that the activities of TotalEnergies personnel outside the complex do “leave money for local business owner”.
At issue is the forecast, put forward by TotalEnergies, leader of the Area 1 consortium, that the Afungi US$20 billion liquefied natural gas (LNG) megaproject will resume operations in August. The project, suspended since 2021 due to attacks by Islamic extremists, has been suspended on ‘force majeure’ grounds.
However, local business owners say they have been informed that, for security reasons, the supply of goods and services to the complex will only be carried out by air and sea, not land.
“There’s a businessman in Moeda, a businessman in Macomia, and a businessman in Chiúei [inland districts of Cabo Delgado], who have no access to the sea. How are they going to do it?” asks Irache.
The governor of Cabo Delgado province, Valige Tauabo, told Lusa that he is excited about the imminent return of TotalEnergies, but also that he doesn’t believe local business owners will be left out.
“We are certain that Total will not close,” Tauabo stated, adding: “We believe that there may have been some communication issues, some understanding, but we are confident that Total’s intention is not to close, as may have been perceived.”
He further asserts that the oil major’s concerns in adopting some more restrictive measures are with the safety of the complex and its workers.
“That’s what Total is pushing, first in terms of safety (…), so that, when it reopens, it reopens with all the necessary precautions, and the government is also doing its part,” The governor affirmed.
Business owners, however, are also concerned about the possibility of workers for the LNG project being isolated inside the complex, without any contact with the outside world , when such contact would also boost business.
“They should live in the community. They work there, return to the community, take advantage of renting guesthouses there, houses that were built for that purpose, and make the most of the community’s traditional food,” says the representative of Cabo Delgado business owners.
Otherwise, he says, “the 15 or 20 days they spend working there” end, and “how will local business owners benefit?” he asks.
From vehicles, logistical support, food, to construction materials, Cabo Delgado business owners insist they are ready to provide supplies.
For the governor of Cabo Delgado, after the project’s suspension, “expectations are at their highest” regarding TotalEnergies’ return to the project.
“Cabo Delgado was evolving, the environment was different, the hope was different. And then, when force majeure was declared [suspending the project], due to the extremist incursions, it’s obvious that all the hope that existed was drastically dashed. […] And when the possibility of a resumption is created, expectations are higher,” Tauabo added.
“It will once again catapult psychological hope, and also the hope that through work, through this recovery, a value chain will exist, and that’s where everyone’s well-being lies. There will be subcontracted companies offering services. Our hotels will be occupied, the rooms we have here, and tourism, as well as all services, everything in the business sector, will have room to offer services,” he argues.
Mozambique has three approved development projects to exploit the Rovuma Basin LNG reserves , ranked among the largest in the world, off the coast of Cabo Delgado.
Since October 2017, the gas-rich province has faced an armed rebellion with attacks claimed by movements associated with the extremist group Islamic State, which have resulted in more than a million displaced people, including 349 deaths in 2024 alone, according to data from the Africa Center for Strategic Studies, a US Department of Defense academic institution that analyses conflicts in Africa.
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