The Stingray pipeline barge has begun installing offshore infrastructure for TotalEnergies’ $20-billion Mozambique LNG project, marking the first tangible step in physical execution since the project resumed after more than five years of disruption.
The vessel is laying five gas pipelines across a 17.7-kilometre corridor in Palma Bay, in Cabo Delgado province in northern Mozambique. The pipelines will connect Area 1 — the offshore production block at the heart of the project — to the Afungi liquefaction facilities onshore, where natural gas will be processed and exported as liquefied natural gas (LNG).
The Palma Bay installation is the first phase of a broader offshore campaign. A deepwater component, extending connections between Area 1 and Afungi, is planned for the second quarter of 2027. First LNG production is targeted for 2029.
More than 4,000 workers have been mobilised as construction activity resumes, a figure that signals the scale of the project’s re-engagement with the region and its potential employment impact in one of Mozambique’s most conflict-affected provinces.
The project was suspended in April 2021 when TotalEnergies declared force majeure — a legal mechanism that suspends contractual obligations due to extraordinary circumstances — following an escalation of armed insecurity around the town of Palma. That suspension left one of sub-Saharan Africa’s largest energy investments in limbo and dealt a significant blow to Mozambique’s ambitions to become a major LNG exporter.
The Stingray barge’s arrival and the commencement of pipeline installation represent a shift from announced intentions to active construction, a distinction that carries weight for investors, contractors, and regional energy markets watching the project’s recovery closely.
Mozambique LNG, if it reaches commercial production, is expected to position the country alongside Tanzania and South Africa as a significant node in Africa’s growing natural gas export infrastructure — and to supply European and Asian markets seeking alternatives to Russian pipeline gas.
The gas is expected to be exported to Europe, where countries continue to seek alternatives to Russian supply.
