ExxonMobil awards McDermott engineering work for Rovuma LNG's next phaseAnalysis

McDermott Energy Solutions (UK) Limited has won a letter of intent from ExxonMobil Moçambique Limitada to continue engineering and procurement work on Rovuma LNG's Phase 1 midstream development, McDermott said Aug. 6. The award covers limited engineering and procurement services and comes as the project's Area 4 partners work toward a final investment decision expected in 2026. ExxonMobil's award covers the midstream and LNG portion of Rovuma LNG's first phase, and it supports continued project definition and planning ahead of that decision.

A subsidiary award, not a fresh contract

McDermott's UK subsidiary is the majority shareholder in the SMDC joint venture, whose other partners are Saipem S.p.A., Daewoo Engineering & Construction Co. Ltd. and China Petroleum Engineering & Construction Corporation (CPECC). ExxonMobil issued the letter of intent on behalf of the Area 4 partners.

McDermott describes the SMDC joint venture as bringing extensive global experience in the engineering, procurement and construction of LNG facilities. SMDC had already completed front-end engineering design, known as FEED, for Rovuma LNG. Rob Shaul, McDermott's senior vice president of low carbon solutions, said that work leaves the venture "well positioned to advance the project into its next phase." Michael McKelvy, McDermott's chief executive and board chair, pointed to the company's Mozambique LNG track record and "our disciplined approach to execution" as reasons for the award.

McDermott, the parent company, describes itself as operating in more than 30 countries with more than 30,000 employees and a fleet of specialty marine construction vessels and fabrication facilities.

Engineering scope and where the work happens

McDermott will handle engineering for the plant's inside battery limits, the core processing units within the facility's boundary, including the 12 modular liquefaction modules planned for Rovuma LNG's onshore development. That engineering work will run out of McDermott's London and Gurgaon offices, while the company seconds project management staff to the joint venture team based in Milan.

Rovuma LNG's onshore facility is designed to produce 18.6 million tonnes of LNG a year, with start-up anticipated in 2031. The project is ExxonMobil's largest single investment.

Revenue and jobs projected for Mozambique

Rovuma LNG is expected to deliver about $150 billion in revenue to the government of Mozambique over the project's 30-year life, McDermott said. A macroeconomic study released by Standard Bank found that the project, led by ExxonMobil in Area 4, could add around $11 billion a year to Mozambique's gross domestic product and employ more than 150,000 people.

The letter of intent itself is narrow: limited engineering and procurement services tied to one phase of one project. But it is the mechanism by which a joint venture that already ran FEED work keeps its staff assigned to Rovuma LNG while ExxonMobil and its Area 4 partners finish the analysis behind a final investment decision. The scale attached to that decision, a 30-year, $150 billion revenue stream for Mozambique's government and a plant sized at 18.6 million tonnes a year, is what makes a procurement-scope award worth tracking rather than routine.