The head of French energy giant TotalEnergies is expected to visit Mozambique this week, where a multi-billion dollar gas project has been on hold since a jihadist attack in 2021, according to government sources.
CEO Patrick Pouyanne is due to visit the southern African country to discuss the conditions for a possible restart of operations in the troubled province of Cabo Delgado.
Pouyanne « tiendra des réunions (…) pour la reprise des activités interrompues à la suite de l’action terroriste », a déclaré à l’AFP un responsable mozambicain sous couvert d’anonymat.
He is expected to meet with President Filipe Nyusi and government ministers, the sources said.
TotalEnergies said it had not commented on the travel arrangements.
Mozambique has high hopes for the vast natural gas deposits, the largest discovered south of the Sahara, which were found in the Muslim-majority northern province in 2010.
If all the fields are exploited, Mozambique could become one of the world's top 10 gas exporters, according to estimates.
But the region has since been hit by an insurgency led by militants linked to the Islamic State, casting doubt on the project.
TotalEnergies has halted its $20 billion LNG project in 2021 after a deadly raid on the coastal town of Palma.
The attack triggered the deployment of forces from Rwanda and southern African countries that have since helped Mozambique regain control of much of Cabo Delgado.
But sporadic, low-level jihadist attacks continue in parts of the province.
Pouyanne's visit is likely to fuel expectations that TotalEnergies is about to resume work in the impoverished region.
In November, the region's first export cargo of liquefied natural gas (LNG) left Mozambique for Europe.
But the LNG was produced at Coral Sul, a floating facility run by the Italian company Eni.
The deepwater project has so far been spared the risk of attack, while the Total project is onshore.
The conflict in northern Mozambique has left more than 4,500 people dead, including 2,000 civilians, and forced around one million people to flee their homes.