The British government wants to withdraw from the Rovuma basin natural gas project in Cabo Delgado province, confirmed TotalEnergies CEO Patrick Pouyanne. The issue is the volatile situation in Cabo Delgado caused by armed attacks.

The news was first reported by the British daily Financial Times.

Speaking to journalists on Wednesday (05) in Paris, Pouyanne confirmed that Britain wants to withdraw from the project despite having previously committed to an investment of between 800 million and 1000 million dollars.

According to a VOAThe British government agency UK Export Finance (UKEF) had agreed in 2020 to provide loans and loan guarantees to British banks and companies involved in the development of the project.

However, the British newspaper quoted a source as saying that the Prime Minister "is trying to find a way for this (the investment) not to happen but is worried that they could be taken to court if they don't".

British environmental organizations claim that, under the COP 26 climate change agreements, this project is now illegal in the face of British commitments made in those agreements to reduce the use of fossil fuels.

A nightmare

An official source quoted by the Financial Times said that "it's not the environmental concerns that are the problem, it's the volatile situation", which he described as "a nightmare".

The director of TotalEnergies confirmed that Great Britain is checking whether it has the legal right to abandon the project, but noted that the British government had already signed a contract to that effect.

"I'm waiting to see how they explain it to us," Pouyanne told journalists.

Netherlands may also withdraw

It is also known that the Dutch Credit Agency is reassessing the "human rights and violence" situation on the ground before deciding whether to re-issue credit insurance worth 1 billion euros.

The Financial Times also reported that last year the US government under President Joe Biden had refused to renew loans worth 4.7 billion dollars for the Cabo Delgado project.

The chairman and CEO of TotalEnergies also said yesterday that he expects the Trump administration to approve "in the coming weeks" credits of 4.7 billion dollars for the liquefied gas (LNG) project in northern Mozambique.

However, Pouyanne said she hoped that the approval of the loan would be "restored" quickly by the Trump administration.

(Photo DR)