Mozambique sees gas project as pathway to south’s recovery

MAPUTO – A US$1,2 billion (N$7 billion) natural gas project led by South Africa’s petrochemical giant Sasol in neighbouring Mozambique has fuelled hopes for the economic recovery of the country’s once-vibrant southern hub.

Sasol, in partnership with the Mozambique Hydrocarbon Company (ENH), has built a an 856-kilometre pipeline to transport gas from Temane, about 700 kilometres north of the southern seaside capital Maputo, to its fuel complex in Secunda across the border. The Temane gas project has just spawned a new firm – the Matola Gas Company (MGC), a venture between South Africa’s Gigajoule and several Mozambican firms including ENH.All this is a boom for Mozambique, a former Portuguese colony which gained independence in 1975 but was devastated by a 16-year civil war that ended in 1992.Close to 55 per cent of Mozambicans live below the poverty line.MGC will build a pipeline to supply natural gas to the Mozambican industrial city of Matola, which will be branched off from the main pipeline linking the Temane gas fields to the South African town of Secunda.”We are investing some 26 million dollars (N$156 million) to build the pipeline from the border town of Ressano Garcia to Matola, where we already signed contracts with eight customers including the Mozal aluminium smelter,” Johan de Vos, managing director of Gigajoule said.Mozal, a two billion-US dollar (N$12 billion) project led by Britain’s Billiton, Japan’s Mitsubishi and South Africa’s Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) is at the heart of a major free zone industrial park close to the port of Maputo.Some major companies in the area have shut down after going bankrupt from high operating costs such as Texlon, a former state-run textile firm, and glass producer Vidreira de Mocambique.With the Matola gas project, Mozambique also hopes to cut its annual fuel imports by about 80 million US dollars (N$480 million), according to a government statement.Mozambican officials say gas will be cheaper thereby slashing production costs.Labour Minister Mario Sevene said the gas project would help Mozambique tackle unemployment, which is between 21 per cent and possibly as high as 50 per cent.Gas from Temane is already being used to generate electricity in the tourist and fishing towns of Vilankulo and Inhassouro as well as on the strategic Barazuto archipelago off the coast of Inhambane.-Nampa-AFPThe Temane gas project has just spawned a new firm – the Matola Gas Company (MGC), a venture between South Africa’s Gigajoule and several Mozambican firms including ENH.All this is a boom for Mozambique, a former Portuguese colony which gained independence in 1975 but was devastated by a 16-year civil war that ended in 1992.Close to 55 per cent of Mozambicans live below the poverty line.MGC will build a pipeline to supply natural gas to the Mozambican industrial city of Matola, which will be branched off from the main pipeline linking the Temane gas fields to the South African town of Secunda.”We are investing some 26 million dollars (N$156 million) to build the pipeline from the border town of Ressano Garcia to Matola, where we already signed contracts with eight customers including the Mozal aluminium smelter,” Johan de Vos, managing director of Gigajoule said.Mozal, a two billion-US dollar (N$12 billion) project led by Britain’s Billiton, Japan’s Mitsubishi and South Africa’s Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) is at the heart of a major free zone industrial park close to the port of Maputo.Some major companies in the area have shut down after going bankrupt from high operating costs such as Texlon, a former state-run textile firm, and glass producer Vidreira de Mocambique.With the Matola gas project, Mozambique also hopes to cut its annual fuel imports by about 80 million US dollars (N$480 million), according to a government statement.Mozambican officials say gas will be cheaper thereby slashing production costs.Labour Minister Mario Sevene said the gas project would help Mozambique tackle unemployment, which is between 21 per cent and possibly as high as 50 per cent.Gas from Temane is already being used to generate electricity in the tourist and fishing towns of Vilankulo and Inhassouro as well as on the strategic Barazuto archipelago off the coast of Inhambane.-Nampa-AFP