The Mozambican government has approved a $7.2 billion financing structure for the construction of the Coral Norte floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) project in the Rovuma Basin, in an arrangement that imposes no public debt obligations or fiscal risks on the state. The decision was taken by the Council of Ministers on 4 November and covers the development of the project in Area 4, off the coast of Cabo Delgado province, led by Italian energy company Eni in partnership with the state hydrocarbons company Empresa Nacional de Hidrocarbonetos (ENH).

Under the approved decree, up to 70% of the investment may be financed through external capital, while the remaining 30% at minimum must be provided by the project partners through their own equity. The financing structure sets a ceiling of $7.2 billion and stipulates that the funds mobilised may not generate any financial burden for the state.

The decree explicitly states that the financing arrangements will be contracted without the state assuming “any debt, fiscal risk, financial charge or obligation of a similar nature arising from project financing.” It further establishes that lenders may not exercise rights or enforce guarantees that could compromise national sovereignty, the state’s regulatory powers, or ownership of natural resources.

As part of the same decision, the Council of Ministers approved the incorporation of ENH Coral Norte, SU, S.A., through ENH Rovuma Área 4, S.A., the vehicle through which the national concessionaire will hold its stake in the project. Coral Norte FLNG will be the second floating LNG production platform in Area 4, with a projected capacity of 3.55 million tonnes per year — nearly double the installed capacity of Coral Sul FLNG, which has been in operation since 2022.

The approval of the financing structure marks a further step following the Final Investment Decision (FID), signed in Maputo on 2 October 2025 by the Area 4 partners: Eni, ENH, China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), Korea Gas Corporation (KOGAS), and XRG. At the signing ceremony, attended by President Daniel Chapo, Eni’s chief executive Claudio Descalzi announced that production is expected to begin in 2028.

“We have set the schedule for 2028. This means we are starting now with the FID and, within two years, we will begin production. And that is a commitment — it is not just talk. It is not a dream, it is a commitment,” Descalzi said, reaffirming the company’s adherence to the platform’s planned commissioning timeline.

According to Eni’s chief executive, the commissioning of Coral Norte will position Mozambique as Africa’s third-largest LNG producer, behind only Nigeria and Algeria. With the new project’s contribution, national production is expected to reach approximately 7 million tonnes per year. Eni has stated that the project will extend the economic benefits already generated by Coral Sul and strengthen the country’s presence in the international LNG market.

Beyond export-oriented production, agreements concluded with the state provide for the allocation to the domestic market of a volume of natural gas equivalent to 25% of the project’s total output. The arrangements also foresee the delivery of all condensate produced, which may be used in power generation and industrial development, reinforcing the domestic utilisation of natural resources.

Mozambique currently hosts three major commercial gas projects drawing on the Rovuma Basin’s reserves, which are considered among the largest in the world. In addition to Coral Sul and Coral Norte, TotalEnergies is leading a project on the Afungi peninsula whose resumption is under way after several years of suspension due to armed attacks in Cabo Delgado. A further project led by ExxonMobil remains awaiting a final investment decision.