By Matthew Hill and Sergio Chapa
(Bloomberg) –Mozambique is poised to ship its first cargo of liquefied natural gas overseas, joining the ranks of the world’s exporters as a global energy crunch pushes prices of the fuel to record highs.
The LNG tanker British Mentor, operated by BP Plc, is set to arrive Aug. 24 at a new floating terminal that Eni SpA is completing off Mozambique’s northern coastline, ship-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg show.
Read Also: The ESG Hypocrisy Of Shipping LNG To Europe
Commissioning activities at the Coral-Sul FLNG vessel are progressing, and first exports will be communicated in due course, Eni said in an emailed statement. The Italian company has said it’s already planning a second floating export platform in the southern African country that could be brought on in less than four years.
Mozambique is firing up its first export terminal as tight gas supplies after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine send prices soaring in Europe, where nations including the UK and Germany have warned that the fuel squeeze could prompt rationing and trigger a recession. Seeking to end their dependence on Russian gas, European buyers are paying a hefty premium as they compete with Asia to secure LNG cargoes ahead of the winter.
Eni’s $7-billion Coral-Sul project had been targeting first exports by October and has moved forward despite the pandemic and an Islamic State-linked insurgency in Mozambique that derailed a $20 billion TotalEnergies SE export facility. BP in 2016 signed a deal to buy all of the output for 20 years from Coral-Sul, which is designed to produce 3.4 million metric tons of LNG.
Mozambique, the world’s third-poorest country according to data from the World Bank, has in recent years had its economy battered by a sovereign debt scandal and the jihadist insurgency. A series of severe tropical cyclones have also wreaked havoc along its coastline.
© 2022 Bloomberg L.P.
This article contains reporting from Bloomberg, published under license.
Sign up for gCaptain’s newsletter and never miss an update
Essential maritime and offshore news, insights, and updates delivered daily straight to your inbox
Sallaum Lines has taken delivery of two new LNG dual-fuel Pure Car and Truck Carriers, marking a significant expansion of the company’s Ocean Class fleet as it advances its environmental...
Ship traffic in the Arctic reached a new milestone in 2025, with 1,812 unique vessels operating inside the Polar Code area, according to new data released by the Arctic Council Working Group on the Protection of the Arctic Marine Environment (PAME). The figures mark a 40% increase from 2013, when PAME began tracking traffic through its Arctic Ship Traffic Data (ASTD) system.
Operations at the floating LNG import facility Mukran off the Baltic coast of Germany resumed this week after icebreaking efforts by the multipurpose vessel Neuwerk restored access to open water following weeks of disruption caused by heavy sea ice in the bay off Mukran.
Subscribe to gCaptain Daily and stay informed with the latest global maritime and offshore news
Essential news coupled with the finest maritime content sourced from across the globe.
Sign Up
Join The Club
