SEOUL, August 07 (AJP) -Daewoo Engineering & Construction has taken a major step toward securing one of Africa's largest energy projects after receiving a letter of intent to lead engineering, procurement and construction work on the first phase of Mozambique's Rovuma LNG development, reinforcing South Korea's presence in the global race to expand liquefied natural gas capacity.
The company said Friday that ExxonMobil Mozambique, the project operator, selected the SMDC joint venture—comprising Daewoo E&C, Italy's Saipem, U.S.-based McDermott and China's CPECC—as the preferred EPC contractor for the project's midstream LNG liquefaction facilities.
The letter of intent authorizes the consortium to begin front-end engineering refinement, procurement preparation and constructability reviews ahead of a final investment decision, which ExxonMobil aims to complete by the end of this year. A full EPC contract is expected to follow if the project receives final approval.
The Rovuma LNG Phase 1 project will develop the giant Area 4 offshore gas field in northern Mozambique and build an LNG liquefaction complex capable of producing 18.6 million metric tons annually, together with a large gas-fired combined-cycle power plant and related infrastructure.
The project is designed as an electrically driven LNG facility that replaces conventional gas turbines with electric motors to reduce carbon emissions and improve energy efficiency. Commercial operations are targeted for 2031.
The project is owned by Rovuma Venture, a consortium led by ExxonMobil, Italy's Eni and China's CNPC through Mozambique Rovuma Venture, alongside Mozambique's state energy company ENH, Korea Gas Corp. (KOGAS) and Abu Dhabi's XRG.
For South Korea, the project extends its footprint in global LNG infrastructure beyond gas imports.
KOGAS already holds a 10 percent stake in the development, while Daewoo E&C's selection as a prime contractor strengthens Korea's role across both upstream investment and downstream engineering.
The appointment also reinforces Daewoo E&C's standing in one of the world's most technically demanding construction markets.
LNG liquefaction plants require specialized cryogenic technology capable of processing natural gas at temperatures below minus 162 degrees Celsius, a market historically dominated by a handful of global contractors including Bechtel, McDermott, Saipem and Japan's JGC.
Daewoo E&C became the first South Korean builder to join that group as a prime contractor through Nigeria LNG Train 7 in 2020. Its selection for Rovuma LNG further establishes the company as one of the few Asian contractors capable of leading large-scale LNG liquefaction projects rather than serving only as a subcontractor.
The project also comes as demand for LNG infrastructure is expected to remain robust despite the global energy transition.
Rapid growth in artificial intelligence, hyperscale data centers and electricity consumption has revived interest in natural gas as a lower-carbon transition fuel capable of supporting increasingly power-intensive economies.
If the final investment decision proceeds as planned later this year, Rovuma LNG would become one of the largest new LNG developments launched globally in recent years and a significant overseas order for South Korea's engineering industry.
At 02:12 p.m. Friday, shares of Daewoo E&C were trading 3.26 percent lower at 16,330 won.
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