Pressure from environmental groups on financial institutions has led French bank Credit Agricole to refuse to finance Exxon Mobil and Eni's liquefied natural gas exploration project in the Rovuma basin, Cabo Delgado province.

The measure, announced on Monday, extends to the Papua New Guinea project, which is backed by TotalEnergies, Santo and Exxon Mobil.

The bank decided not to drain millions of dollars into the development of energy projects based on fossil fuels, which contribute to increasing climate warming.

Credit Agricole was the main financial advisor for the Papua LNG and Rovuma LNG projects. And so far, it is not known whether the bank's decision will affect the development schedule of the projects.

Cited by ReutersThe private finance campaigner for Friends of the Earth France, Lorette Philippot, said that Credit Agricole needs to be consistent in its decisions, and also dropped its support for the TotalEnergies project in Mozambique, which is in the process of being taken over.

Oil and gas companies have launched LNG projects to meet the demand for chilled gas, which is expected to increase by 50%, to around 650 million metric tons per year by 2040.