The future of Mozambique's gas ambitions hinges on its ability to end a deadly insurgency linked to Islamic State, but if peace is the answer the southern African country and French energy giant TotalEnergies (TTEF.PA) may have a problem.
TotalEnergies declined to comment for this article. An Exxon spokesperson said the company continues to evaluate the security situation. Government officials did not respond to questions.
"We are nowhere near a match for them," one soldier said of the Islamists after the Palma attack, adding that the insurgents also knew the terrain better. After a spike in violence forced TotalEnergies to suspend work last year, it asked the government for a 1,000-strong force to protect its site and a 25 km security perimeter.
Hundreds of contractors supporting the project were caught in the violence. At least one was killed trying to escape from a besieged hotel. Five told Reuters they would not return without greater assurances from TotalEnergies about security.In the months ahead of the attack, government forces had left Mocimboa da Praia - a port just 80 km away - in insurgent hands since August, allowing them a launch pad from which some analysts believe they staged the Palma attack.
During the fighting, two eye witnesses told Reuters they saw soldiers fleeing. Those who stayed said they were out gunned. And military action alone won't address the political and economic exclusion feeding the insurgents' ranks, said Dino Mahtani of the International Crisis Group, a Brussels-based research group.
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