The consortium behind the Mozambique LNG project intends to install an industrial facility in the district of Palma, Cabo Delgado, capable of producing approximately 5,000 tonnes of coconut biodiesel per year, to be used in supplying its liquefied natural gas operations.
The initiative forms part of the decarbonisation strategy of TotalEnergies EP Mozambique Area 1 (TEPMA1), the operator of Mozambique LNG, and envisages the creation of a local low-carbon biofuel production chain based on coconuts supplied by farmers in the region, according to tender documentation reviewed by Lusa.
To advance the project, TEPMA1 has issued an expression of interest to select companies, investors, or consortia to finance, design, build, own, and operate the industrial facility under a Finance-Build-Own-Operate model.
The planned facility will have a nominal capacity to produce approximately 5,000 tonnes per year of B100 biodiesel and will include vegetable oil extraction and refining units, raw material collection centres, and a network of local aggregators. Mozambique LNG is expected to act as anchor buyer of the output through a long-term offtake agreement, a mechanism designed to underpin the commercial viability of the initiative and the sustainability of the coconut value chain.
Production will be fed by raw material sourced from smallholder farmers in Palma, integrated into a broader agricultural development strategy being promoted by TotalEnergies in the region. According to the company, the programme includes the establishment of nurseries, technical assistance to more than 3,000 farmers, and the planting of more than 440,000 coconut seedlings.
The strategy is expected to increase the availability of feedstock for biodiesel production while simultaneously generating new income streams for local communities. Beyond the environmental component, the project aims to stimulate job creation and new economic activity linked to the production, processing, and commercialisation of coconut-derived products.
The biodiesel produced will be used in Mozambique LNG operations as a lower-carbon alternative to conventional fuels. The project, developed in Area 1 of the Rovuma Basin, officially resumed activities in January 2026 after nearly four years of suspension due to insecurity caused by armed attacks in Cabo Delgado.
According to TotalEnergies, the development is currently approaching 50% completion and is mobilising between 7,000 and 8,000 workers at the Afungi construction site. In the presentation of second-quarter 2026 results, TotalEnergies chief executive Patrick Pouyanné indicated that the project continues to advance with the objective of commencing liquefied natural gas production in 2029.
Valued at approximately US$20 billion, Mozambique LNG is expected to have capacity to produce up to 13 million tonnes of LNG per year once operational. The project forms part of a broader set of major investments targeting the development of natural gas reserves in the Rovuma Basin.
Mozambique currently has three major approved projects for the exploitation of these reserves. The Coral Sul FLNG, led by Italian major Eni, has been producing since 2022, while Coral Norte, approved in 2025, is expected to increase liquefaction capacity in Area 4 from 2028. The Rovuma LNG project, led by ExxonMobil, in turn envisages production capacity of approximately 18 million tonnes of LNG per year after 2030.
Source: Diário Económico
Original article: https://www.diarioeconomico.co.mz/2026/09/09/oilgas/totalenergies-aposta-em-biodiesel-de-coco-para-abastecer-mozambique-lng/
