- Mozambican delegation met with the Deputy Chairperson of Russia’s Security Council
- Chapo calls for natural gas for national development, rather than solely for export
By Ricardo Dias
Maputo (MOZTIMES) – President Daniel Chapo met Russian officials in Moscow on Tuesday to discuss strengthening cooperation in areas considered strategic for Mozambique’s development.
Following a working meeting with Dmitry Medvedev, Deputy Chairperson of Russia’s Security Council, Chapo told journalists that the two countries had strengthened their historic ties of friendship and cooperation.
“We are here once again to further strengthen our historic relations of friendship and cooperation and, above all, to expand our economic and trade relations,” the Mozambican head of state said.
Chapo is leading the government delegation attending the Third Russia–Africa Summit in Moscow at the invitation of Russian President Vladimir Putin. He is accompanied by Foreign Minister, Maria Manuela dos Santos Lucas; the Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy, Estevão Pale; the Minister of Transport and Logistics, João Matlombe; and the Minister of Economy, Basílio Muhate.
Chapo’s meeting with Medvedev may suggest that the two countries discussed security cooperation, particularly as Mozambique faces a terrorist threat in the northern province of Cabo Delgado from attacks by insurgent groups backed by Islamic State. Russia has traditionally been one of Mozambique’s main partners in defence and security, and many Mozambican military personnel have received training in Russia.
Russia previously deployed a private military company, the Wagner Group, to help Mozambique combat the insurgency in Cabo Delgado. However, the mission proved disastrous, lasting only around three months and suffering substantial casualties among Russian personnel. Since then, Russian support for Mozambique has continued to focus on training and the supply of military equipment.
Gas to develop Mozambique, not just for export
Speaking at the Eighth Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF) in Moscow, Chapo said his vision was for natural gas from the Rovuma Basin, on the border with Tanzania, to serve not only exports but also the country’s development.
“We want the gas extracted from deep beneath our land and sea, particularly from the Rovuma Basin in Cabo Delgado, to become energy that powers Mozambique’s transformation: bringing light to our schools and health facilities, producing fertilisers that strengthen global agriculture, powering factories, creating jobs for our young people and women, and supporting domestic agriculture,” the president said.
Mozambique expects to produce around 35 million tonnes of liquefied natural gas (LNG) annually once the two major projects in the Rovuma Basin, Mozambique LNG and Rovuma LNG, reach full capacity after 2030. Mozambican legislation on hydrocarbons stipulates that around 25% of all production from the Rovuma Basin should be allocated to the domestic market, providing an opportunity to use gas to drive industrialisation.
Chapo reiterated his ambition to transform Mozambique’s economy, which is predominantly based on the extraction and export of natural resources, into one that processes those resources to generate added value, drive industrialisation and strengthen economic sovereignty.
Chapo’s visit to Russia ends on Thursday, 29 October. (RD)
