The Bank of Mozambique (BoM) announced on Monday, September 22, that aluminum export revenues nearly doubled in the first quarter, reaching $380.7 million.
According to Lusa, this information comes from a BoM report detailing aluminum exports—entirely dependent on Mozal, the country’s largest industrial operation, whose continuity remains uncertain—from January to March this year.
“Aluminum exports increased from $202.2 million in the first quarter of 2024 to $380.7 million in the same period of 2025,” the report notes, highlighting that the growth in revenues was driven both by an increase in exported volume (45%).
Of a total $440.1 million exported by the manufacturing sector in the first quarter, more than 85% consisted of aluminum bars, an activity supported by Mozal. The company recently announced the possibility of shutting down in 2026, citing electricity supply issues at its Maputo facility.
“The government is and will naturally continue, first, to support Mozal, and second, to negotiate improved terms to ensure it continues operating in Mozambique with all necessary facilities, without causing harm to any party,” said Council of Ministers spokesperson Inocêncio Impissa after the body’s meeting in Maputo on August 26. He added that the government is in a “much friendlier dialogue” with all parties involved, including Mozal, Hidroeléctrica de Moçambique (HCB), and South Africa’s Eskom, ensuring that all interests are “legally protected and fair.”
Impissa also stated that the government is aware of the “set of risks” associated with the crisis at the country’s largest industrial operation and is informed about the termination of contracts with some suppliers by Mozal, but clarified that this is unrelated to ongoing negotiations.
Mozal, employing around 5,000 workers at Africa’s second-largest aluminum smelter near Maputo, announced in August plans to reduce investment and lay off contracted workers, maintaining only operations until March 2026, when its electricity supply contract ends, citing lack of conditions for continued operation.
In a market statement, Australian group South32, which leads the unit, said it is engaging with the government, HCB, and Eskom “to ensure sufficient and affordable electricity supply” to “allow operations beyond March 2026, when the current energy supply contract expires.”
“This announcement [regarding the potential closure of Mozal in 2026] was followed by the sudden termination of contracts with around 20 Mozambican supplier companies, directly affecting approximately 1,000 jobs and threatening the continuity of firms with decades of uninterrupted collaboration with the smelter,” stated Álvaro Massingue, president of the Confederation of Economic Associations (CTA), in August. Mozal consumes nearly half of Mozambique’s energy production and accounts for an estimated 3% of the country’s GDP.
On August 18, President Daniel Chapo stated that the electricity tariffs proposed by Mozal could collapse HCB, responding to the threat of closure of the aluminum smelter in 2026.
Mozal’s electricity supply comes via South Africa’s Eskom, which purchases energy from HCB—66% of total production in 2024—based in central Mozambique. The government aims to reverse this situation.
In February last year, the government announced plans to repatriate electricity exported from HCB to South Africa since 1979 for domestic use by 2030, as outlined in Mozambique’s Energy Transition Strategy to 2050.
Source: Diário Económico
