South Africa to buy more electricity from Mozambique

In an effort to address South Africa’s power supply challenges, French oil and gas company TotalEnergies plans to provide up to 1,000 megawatts of electricity to South Africa through its proposed liquefied natural gas (LNG)-to-power project in Matola, Mozambique.

1. The project director, Antoine Mezin, announced the company’s intentions at the Mozambique Energy and Gas Summit in Maputo.
2. Discussions are underway to establish power purchase agreements, with the target of reaching 1,000 megawatts in the mid-term.
3. TotalEnergies has engaged in talks with South African electricity minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa and has also held meetings with South African mining and industrial companies, many of which have expressed interest in purchasing electricity from the Matola LNG project.
4. The Matola project is a collaboration between TotalEnergies and South African energy company Gigajoule International. The final investment decision for the project is expected to be made in 2024.
5. The project involves importing LNG to a regasification terminal at the Beluluane industrial park in Matola. The gas will be converted back into gas by the Beluluane Gas Company and used to generate electricity at the 2,000 megawatt Beluluane power plant.
6. The Beluluane power plant, set to be operational by 2026, will be Mozambique’s largest gas-fired power plant. The electricity produced can be sold to South African state-owned electric utility Eskom and power-intensive industrial users.