‘Biggest Pre-investment,’ ExxonMobil Fires Up $1.1 Bm Bet on Mozambique’s Rovuma LNG

● as Africa’s Gas Race Heats Up

ExxonMobil has placed its biggest pre-investment bet yet on Africa’s energy future, awarding about $1.1 billion in upstream equipment contracts for the Rovuma LNG Phase 1 project in Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado province. The move signals the U.S. oil major is accelerating toward a final investment decision on one of the world’s largest untapped natural gas developments.

The contracts were awarded on Monday on behalf of the Area 4 partners. The consortium includes Mozambique’s state firm Empresa Nacional de Hidrocarbonetos, China National Petroleum Corp, Italy’s Eni, Korea Gas Corp, and XRG, the international arm of Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. Together, they control one of the largest offshore gas discoveries outside the U.S.

The awards cover critical path equipment needed to unlock deepwater gas. They include subsea production systems, large-bore production valves, and offshore line pipe. Industry analysts say securing these long-lead items now is the clearest sign yet that Rovuma LNG is moving from planning to execution mode.

The largest contract went to OneSubsea UK and OneSubsea AS. The deal covers engineering, procurement, fabrication and manufacturing of subsea production systems, controls and umbilicals — the core technology that will connect wells on the seabed to the future LNG facility.

To anchor local content, Aker Solutions Mozambique will support in-country work tied to the OneSubsea award. That provision is key for Mozambique, where the government has pushed for jobs, skills transfer, and domestic participation in the multi-billion dollar gas sector.

Other global suppliers also secured slices of the $1.1 billion package. They include Advanced Technology Valve, Greece’s Corinth Pipeworks, Sumitomo Corporation of America, and China’s Zhejiang Jiuli Hi-Tech Metals. The spread across U.S., European, and Asian firms reflects the international scale of Rovuma.

For ExxonMobil, the contract awards come after years of delays. The company had declared force majeure on Rovuma LNG in 2021 due to security concerns in Cabo Delgado. It lifted that declaration in November 2024, clearing the way to restart development activities in the gas-rich north.

The timing is strategic. Global LNG demand is projected to grow sharply through 2030 as Europe and Asia seek alternatives to Russian gas and coal. Rovuma’s two LNG trains are expected to produce over 15 million tonnes per annum, positioning Mozambique as a top-10 LNG exporter once online.

From a business perspective, the $1.1 billion spend is a de-risking step. By locking in subsea systems and piping now, the Area 4 partners avoid supply chain bottlenecks and cost inflation that have plagued other mega-projects. It also sends a strong signal to financiers ahead of the FID.

For Mozambique, the economic upside is massive. Beyond direct revenues, the project is expected to drive infrastructure, port development, and thousands of jobs in Cabo Delgado — a region that has struggled with insecurity but sits atop an estimated 100 trillion cubic feet of recoverable gas.

The involvement of ENH ensures the state retains a direct stake, while partners like CNPC, Eni, KOGAS and ADNOC’s XRG bring capital, technology and access to key LNG markets in Asia and Europe. That mix is why Rovuma is being watched as a blueprint for African resource monetization.

With pre-investment now underway, all eyes turn to ExxonMobil’s FID timeline. If approved, Rovuma LNG Phase 1 would join TotalEnergies’ nearby Mozambique LNG as a cornerstone of Africa’s emerging gas corridor — and a $1.1 billion down payment that the race to build it has officially begun.

NOP NIGERIA