The CEO of TotalEnergies, Patrick Pouyanné, recently considered it premature to resume operations for the exploration of Liquefied Natural Gas in Cabo Delgado, due to the insecurity situation in the province.

Patrick Pouyanné's position is said to have been prompted by the conclusions of the independent report assessing the humanitarian situation in Cabo Delgado, which the oil company itself commissioned from consultant Jean-Christophe Rufin.

According to the EvidenceThe results of the independent study are being kept confidential, but it has been revealed that the consultant disapproved of the existence of humanitarian conditions for the oil company to resume onshore activities in Cabo Delgado province. This result contradicts the government's assertions that the conditions already exist for the multinational to return.

The newspaper we quote says that Jean-Christophe Rufin delivered the report to TotalEnergies at the end of February, but the study's conclusions, which are to be shared with Mozambicans, remain "secret".

Among the conclusions, there is suspicion of embezzlement of funds for humanitarian aid in the province of Cabo Delgado, which also leads TotalEnergies to relax its return to Mozambique.

TotalEnergies announced the withdrawal of its staff from the Afungi peninsula in Cabo Delgado on April 26, 20221, one month after the attack on Palma. For the withdrawal of the "Force Majeure", and the resumption of activities at the Mozambique LNG project site, Pouyanné conditioned the re-establishment of security in the region, the resumption of the functioning of public services and the return to a normal life for the people of the region.