Total Strikes LNG Supply Deal With Benin

Total has clinched deals with authorities in the West African nation of Benin on LNG supplies as well as the construction of an LNG import terminal, the French major said on July 24.

Under agreements with the Benin government and state-owned energy utility SBEE, Total will supply up to 0.5mn mt/yr of LNG to the country for 15 years starting in 2021. It will also build and operate a floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) off the coast, and a pipeline linking the facility with power generation in Maria Gleta.

“This project is in line with Total’s strategy to develop new gas markets by unlocking access to LNG for fast-growing economies,” Total’s head of gas, Laurent Vivier, said. “We are very pleased to have been entrusted by the Benin authorities to develop LNG imports and support a broad adoption of natural gas in the country.”

Benin is largely dependent on Nigeria and Ghana for its energy needs, while the government is advancing new gas-fired power projects to build up domestic supply, including a new 127-MW station in Maria Gleta.

Benin energy minister Dona Jean-Claude Houssou praised Total for “its willingness to support the revitalisation of the energy sector, which is at the heat of the government’s action plan.”

“I would like to highlight the government's efforts to restore Benin's energy independence, which is the foundation of the country's ambitious economic and social development,” he said.