Mozambican businessmen consider that the recent announcement of more hydrocarbon discoveries in Temane, in Inhambane province, as well as the prospects of opening new boreholes by the Italian oil company Eni, in the Rovuma basin, Cabo Delgado, represent great examples that show that gas has everything to bring a structural transformation of the national energy matrix, to serve the country as well as the world.
Last April, the South African oil company Sasol announced the discovery of new natural gas reserves off the Mozambican coast of Inhassoro, south of the country.
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Speaking at the opening ceremony of the Mozambique-Italy Business Forum, held on Monday (8), the chairman of the Confederation of Economic Associations of Mozambique (CTA), Agostinho Vuma, said that gas exploration had the potential to raise the national economy’s growth rate to figures that, initially, vary between 7 and 8 percent per year and, subsequently, to accelerate the economy to double-digit growth, which means an increase in consumption, public spending and investment, crucial factors for business profitability.
In order to achieve the planned objectives, Agostinho Vuma said that the country had been moving forward with fundamental reforms to make the business environment increasingly better.
In turn, the representative of the Ministry of Mineral Resources and Energy (MIREME), Marcelina Matavele, stressed that the natural resources existing in Mozambique can contribute to the global efforts of energy transition, adding that the Government has been promoting investments in prospecting and research of the resources, in order to leverage development.
“Natural gas provides a fair and secure energy transition alternative, due to its advantages as a less polluting source, in relation to other fossil resources. We intend to place Mozambique as an energy hub in the region and in the world,” she said.
Matavele also said that the gas projects in progress “are positioned as a contribution to a global response to the effects of climate change, increased availability of energy and poverty reduction.
For the Italian Minister of Economic Development, Adolfo Urso, the country is considered a great partner and has energy growth potential, which is why the exchange of experiences with Italian businessmen is important.
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“The Government and the private sector are two areas that help in the development of the economy, and Mozambique meets the requirements to help Europe get out of the energy crisis, through investment and development of its resources,” he concluded.
The one-day event (8 May) was attended by over 50 leading Italian companies in the energy sector operating in Mozambique, South Africa and others from the Italian chambers in Asia.
The Forum’s main theme was the “gas sector, the circular and green economy (biomass, solar energy, hydrogen and waste management)”.
