The Mozal aluminium smelter, located in Maputo Province, will be placed under operational suspension (“care and maintenance”) from March 2026, after the Australian company South32 failed to secure a new electricity supply agreement at competitive prices, according to the newspaper O País.
The announcement was made on Tuesday (16) by the South African–Australian mining company, which holds 63.7% of Mozal Aluminium. The decision follows prolonged negotiations with the Government, Hidroeléctrica de Cahora Bassa (HCB) and South Africa’s Eskom, which did not result in a viable power supply contract to sustain operations after the current agreement expires in March 2026.
“The impasse over an appropriate electricity price was exacerbated by drought conditions that continue to affect HCB’s power supply,” said South32 Chief Executive Officer Graham Kerr, quoted in the statement.
With no new contract in sight, the company also refrained from purchasing the raw materials needed to maintain production beyond March next year.
As a result, Mozal will be technically shut down from 15 March 2026, entailing one-off costs estimated at 60 million US dollars, related to contract terminations and labour compensation. Subsequent annual maintenance is expected to cost around 5 million US dollars.
Kerr expressed regret over the impact this measure will have on workers, suppliers, customers and surrounding communities, noting that the company is developing support mechanisms during the transition process. Until March, Mozal is expected to maintain its planned production of 240,000 tonnes (South32’s share).
The company also stated that aluminium processed at the Worsley Alumina refinery in Australia, which previously supplied Mozal, will be redirected to third-party customers under contracts with indexed pricing.
Mozal is one of the country’s leading industrial exporters and is majority-owned by South32, with additional stakes held by South Africa’s Industrial Development Corporation (32.4%) and the Mozambican State (3.9%).
