Energy Giant Returns: 'Stability' for Mozambique, Profits for Total
📰 THE STORY: ABC News reports that French energy giant TotalEnergies is resuming its $20 billion liquefied natural gas (LNG) project in Mozambique, citing a 'slowdown' in an Islamist insurgency that had halted operations since 2021. 🔍 WHAT THEY'RE NOT TELLING YOU: Historical Context: Mozambique's history is steeped in resource exploitation, from Portuguese colonial rule (which ended in 1975) to
the devastating FRELIMO-RENAMO civil war (1977-1992), fueled by Cold War proxy forces, leaving over one million dead and deeply destabilizing the nation. The current insurgency in Cabo Delgado where the gas fields are located, emerged in 2017 amid rising inequality and grievances over resource appropriation, echoing centuries of foreign entities benefiting while locals suffer. Double Standard: The
'insurgency slows' narrative is framed as a victory for stability, implying that Western-backed security forces (including Rwandan troops, funded by the EU and France) are restoring order for the benefit of all. This stands in stark contrast to how independent movements or anti-imperialist resistance are described in other contexts—often labeled 'terrorists' and met with calls for punitive action,
even when they challenge foreign resource control. The Rwandan military's intervention, for example, is lauded here, yet Rwanda's role as a Western proxy in destabilizing the resource-rich Congo (resulting in millions of deaths, ongoing since the 1990s) is conveniently ignored. Follow the Money: TotalEnergies reaps immense profits from this $20 billion project, which extracts natural gas from