Mozambique Gas

After many years of civil war and political instability, Mozambique is returning to a state of normality and consequently its upstream oil and gas industry is of growing importance in the region. Mozambique's upstream potential appears to lie in natural gas rather than oil. The critical factor in the future exploitation of the country's gas, however, is the emergence of sound commercial criteria for the establishment of a south-east African gas-gathering network capable of serving developing markets in the region.

Substantial reserves of natural gas have been established and Mozambique is likely to become a major producer of gas in the area in the medium term. There are three onshore gas fields, Pande, Temane and Buzi-Divinhe. Pande has reserves estimated to be in excess of 2.1 Tcf,, Temane reserves in the order of 1.0 Tcf and Buzi has recoverable reserves in the order of 10Bcf. Actual gas production is limited to an insignificant amount from the Pande gas field that supplies the needs of local villages.

Mozambique launched its First Offshore Licensing Round on 31 March 2000. This bidding round is offering 14 blocks mainly in the Mozambique Basin covering the shallow and deep Zambezi delta area.

The main players in the upstream industry include: Enron Oil and Gas Resources Inc, Energy Africa, Sasol Petroleum International, Leopardus Resources Limited, Zarara Petroleum Resources, TotalFinaElf SA, Trefoil Ltd, and Lonrho de Provuma Petroleum. BP, Elf and Western are involved in geophysical surveys of offshore areas.

The downstream oil industry relies on imports, mostly from South Africa. Distribution and marketing of fuel products and lubricants is carried out by the state owned oil company Petromoc. Other companies include BP, Mobil, Caltex.

There are three ports in Mozambique, Maputo, Beira, and Nacala which offer an economic supply corridor to neighbouring landlocked countries.

A major project is being negotiated between ENH, the state oil company, Sasol Petroleum International and Enron Oil and Gas to construct a pipeline that will transport gas from both the Pande and Temane gas fields to the Gauteng area in South Africa. The pipeline between Beira and Harare has been extended and is operating close to full capacity even with an expansion through the addition of pumping stations.

The Government's Department of Mineral Resources and Energy regulates the industry.

Control of the country's upstream oil industry rests with the parastatal upstream oil company, Empresa Nacional de Hidrocarbonetos de Mocambique (ENH) which has exclusive rights to explore for and develop petroleum in Mozambique, and is permitted to exercise these rights in association with foreign investors.