Mozambique Oil & Gas Industry: Government plans to approve Oil Law by October

The Mozambican government plans to approve the law to regulate natural resources exploration, particularly oil, ahead of presidential elections in October, Mozambique’s Minister for Planning and Development, Aiuba Cuereneia said in Lisbon.

On the sidelines of a meeting held this week in the Portuguese capital, the minister said that the Mining Law had already been approved and that the Oil Law was essential “not because it fills a void, because there isn’t one, but rather because it introduces a regulatory framework, which investors are waiting for.”

Cuereneia said that the government “was doing everything it can for the Oil Law to be approved before the presidential elections and before the next government starts work.”

Gas production in Mozambique may reach 630,000 barrels of oil equivalent (BOE) per day within ten years if infrastructure constraints are overcome, an analyst from Wood Mackenzie said recently.

According to information from operators, development of the natural gas liquefaction project may require initial investment of US$18 billion.