Africa-Press – Mozambique. The increasing security in Cabo Delgado should make it possible to resume contacts and draw up a new schedule for the Rovuma gas megaproject, Mozambican Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy Max Tonela said on Friday.
The project was halted in March due to armed violence caused by insurgents.
“The teams are on stand-by and it was necessary to demobilise several contracts to mitigate or minimise costs during the interruption period,” Tonela told journalists during a visit to the province.
“What we are going to do, following the normalisation of the security situation, is to resume contacts to draw up the new schedule, but that will be done in due time,” he said.
The resumption of projects will happen as soon as security conditions and long-term stability are assured, the minister also said, in line with what has been announced by stakeholders since March.
Asked by journalists about whether the increase in security corresponds to a safe perimeter around the gas projects, Tonela said that tranquillity should reach the entire province, without limits.
“The aim of the government is for there to be security in all areas affected by terrorist activity and that is also the perspective we have with the [companies] concessionaires of the gas projects,” that is, to allow the populations to return and benefit from the projects, he said.
The Area 1 megaproject, led by French oil company TotalEnergies, the largest private investment in Africa (some €20 billion), is under construction and was scheduled to begin in 2024 before it was suspended in March.
Armed groups have terrorised Cabo Delgado province since 2017, with some attacks claimed by the extremist group Islamic State.
The conflict has led to more than 3,100 deaths, according to the ACLED conflict registration project, and more than 817,000 displaced people, according to Mozambican authorities.
Since July, an offensive by government troops with support from Rwanda has allowed for increased security, recovering several areas where there was a rebel presence, including the town of Mocímboa da Praia, which had been occupied since August 2020.
