An open letter Wednesday signed by 126 non-governmental organizations urged public and private lending institutions to end financing for a Mozambique liquified natural gas facility being built by France’s TotalEnergies. File Photo by Ali Haider/EPA-EFE
Jan. 22 (UPI) — An open letter Wednesday signed by 126 non-governmental organizations urged public and private lending institutions to end financing for a Mozambique liquified natural gas facility being built by France’s TotalEnergies.
“It is in your hands to ensure justice for the people affected by this project, and for the survivors and witnesses of the reported massacre near the Afungi gas site,” the NGOs said in their open letter.
The 126 NGOs cited alleged human rights violations related to the LNG TotalEnergies Mozambique LNG project and urged roughly 30 banks and public finance institutions to withhold funding.
Environmental concerns were also raised.
According to a Wednesday Financial Times report, TotalEnergies has further postponed the LNG project, raising questions about whether it will be able to launch in 2029 as planned.
The company postponed the project due to both increasing security issues and political uncertainty.
In September, Politico EU reported the Mozambique military forced between 180 and 250 people into containers at the TotalEnergies gas plant and held them for three months.
According to 11 survivors and two witnesses, just 26 men survived that ordeal.
Ninety-seven people died from suffocation, gunshot wounds and being beaten to death, according to Politico.
TotalEnergies told Politico extensive research failed to identify any information or evidence to corroborate those allegations.
Since the October presidential election in Mozambique, escalating unrest and attacks near the TotalEnergies LNG facility site have delayed the project’s construction.
“Considering the evolution of the security situation in the north of the Province of Cabo Delgado, in Mozambique, we confirm the withdrawal from Afungi of all personnel from the Mozambique LNG Project,” TotalEnergies said on its website.
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