Countdown to Mozambique LNG restart

Mozambique’s insurgency continues, but the security situation near the LNG site has significantly improved, with TotalEnergies aiming to lift its force majeure within months

TotalEnergies is aiming to lift its four-year-old force majeure on the $20b Mozambique LNG project in the coming months amid improved security conditions. However, the French major is first seeking a freeze on engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) costs. Given the prolonged delay, the project’s overall cost could increase by up to 15% above the original estimate at the time of FID in June 2019. Operations at Mozambique LNG were suspended in April 2021 when TotalEnergies declared force majeure and withdrew all personnel from the site in Afungi, located in Cabo Delgado province, northeastern Mozambique. The decision followed an incursion by Islamist insurgents into the nearby town of