Arguably one of the biggest foreign Energy presence in Africa, French giant, Total, has secured $15.8 billion funding from South African lender FirstRand’s local unit, First National Bank (FNB) Mozambique for the development of the liquefied natural gas (LNG) Golfinho-Atum gas field in northern Mozambique.

In a statement by FNB Mozambique, the financial institution said: “FNB intends to enter other large natural gas projects in Mozambique, just as it entered into Total’s financing, in a consortium of 20 banking institutions that granted $15.8 billion, for which the last contracts were signed [this month].”

Total is expected to get financing from about 20 banks for the first and most significant phase of Senior Debt Funding. Total heads the Area 1 consortium with a 26.5% participation. Its partners are Mitsui of Japan with a participation of 20%, PTTEP of Thailand with a participation of 8.5%, Mozambique National Hydrocarbon Company, ENH, with a participation of 15%, and ONGC Videsh, Beas and Bharat Petro Resources which are all Indian companies with a participation of 10%

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The project is the development of offshore Area 1 Block of the deep-water Rovuma Basin and includes the construction of a 12.88 million tons per annum onshore the LNG facility on the Cabo Delgado coast of Mozambique. Area 1 is said to contain more than 60 trillion cubic feet of gas resources, of which 18 trillion cubic feet will be developed with the first two trains.

Earlier this month, Japan announced it is investing 14 billion dollars in LNG in Mozambique. The funding of the project is said to be coming from several Japanese banks, the public and private sector, as well as the African Development Bank (AfDB). Reports indicate that these funds will be used in the financing the exploitation of a natural gas field in the country, to produce about 12 million tonnes of LNG annually from 2024.