Revenues from natural gas exploited in the Rovuma basin in Cabo Delgado province continue to grow. Data from the Balance of the Economic and Social Plan and State Budget for the Third Quarter shows that the Mozambican state collected 60.45 million USD in revenue from Rovuma gas between January and August.
Of this amount, according to the document published a few days ago by the government, through the Ministry of Economy and Finance, 22.23 million USD come from the Mining Production Tax and 33.22 result from Profit Oil. The Production Bonus, meanwhile, amounts to 5 million USD, the highest figure since the export of Rovuma gas began.
In total, says the Government Report, Rovuma gas has produced 134.61 million USD since 2022, the equivalent of 8,516.77 million Meticais. In the first year of Rovuma gas exploration, the government collected 800,000 USD and in 2023 it made 73.37 million USD.
According to the government, the amount is deposited in the Transitory Account at the Bank of Mozambique, as determined by article 6 of Law no. 1/2024, of January 9, which creates the Sovereign Fund of Mozambique. The Transitory Account, it should be noted, is the bank account where all the revenue from Rovuma natural gas should be channeled before being transferred to the Sovereign Fund and the State Budget.
It should be noted that, according to paragraph a) of number four of article eight of Law no. 1/2024, of January 9, which created the Sovereign Fund, in the first 15 years of the Fund’s operation, 40% of the revenue will actually go to the entity and 60% to the State Budget. Thus, of the amount already collected since 2022, just over 5,110 million Meticais will be allocated to the State Budget.
Remember that the Sovereign Fund is still dependent on the signing of the Management Agreement between the government and the Bank of Mozambique, as manager, for its operationalization.
