Mozambique plans to invest $80 billion (€73 billion) in the Energy Transition Strategy (ETS) by 2050, a roadmap that the president of Mozambique, Filipe Nyusi, will present at the climate summit in Dubai.
“Mozambique has great potential to be a global leader in climate-aligned development. This is due to its considerable renewable energy resources and substantial natural gas reserves. The ambitious ETS sets out a clear path to harness these assets and enable sustainable growth in the country while supporting emissions reductions locally and globally,” said a statement from the Ministry of Mineral Resources and Energy.
According to the same information, to which Lusa had access on Monday, the document with Mozambique’s priorities was approved at a cabinet meeting on 21 November, based on the commitment made by President Filipe Nyusi at the COP27 climate conference in Egypt in 2022.
The “significant expansion of renewable energy capacity”, the “promotion of green industrialisation”, fostering “universal access” to energy and decarbonising transport through biofuels, electric vehicles and rail transport are the four main strategic pillars that frame the ETS, which will be presented on 2 December during COP28 in Dubai.
“President Nyusi and other high-level leaders will unveil the plan to international partners and major donors,” says the same report.
From 2024 to 2030, Mozambique’s government plans to add 3.5 GigaWatts (GW) of new hydroelectric capacity by modernising existing plants and completing the Mphanda Nkuwa hydroelectric project.
It will also “expand and modernise the national grid” to “absorb the increase in renewable generation”, as well as “boost solar and wind energy” through a renewable energy auction programme.
It will also advance the construction of “green industrial parks and corridors enabled by reliable and affordable clean energy”.
The goal is to “achieve total electrification by 2030”, through “off-grid access with a focus on productive uses”, with the increased adoption of biomass production solutions and advancing green transport using natural gas.
“While this short-term agenda is fundamental, Mozambique’s transition will continue beyond 2030. Sustained progress requires continued coordination between the various stakeholders, consultations and increased investment,” reads the same information, which points to indicative capital needs “of approximately $80 billion by 2050”.
“With its extensive advantages now accompanied by a detailed roadmap in the ETS, Mozambique is ready to drive equitable and sustainable development while providing partner regional and global countries with green energy and essential green products to achieve net zero emissions,” the report concluded.
The United Nations has been insisting on the need to immediately adopt “spectacular measures” to prevent further global warming as the planet heads towards 2.9°C of warming.
To prevent a 3°C rise in temperatures by the end of the century, all countries will have to reduce emissions far beyond current pledges, cutting 42% of emissions by 2030 if they want to stay within 1.5°C, a target assumed in 2015 in the Paris Agreement on emissions reductions, a UN report indicates.
The report was released a few days before the start of another UN climate summit (COP28), which will take place between 30 November and 12 December in Dubai, with the ambition of taking the first global stock of the Paris Agreement.
Mozambique is considered one of the countries most severely affected by climate change in the world, facing cyclical floods and tropical cyclones during the rainy season, which runs from October to April.
