Maputo, 14 Jun – The Mozambican Minister of Mineral Resources, Estêvão Pale, believes that local production of biofuels is crucial to mitigate the increase in the prices of the main fossil fuels on the international market.
Speaking on Friday at the V Business Conference on Renewable Energies in Mozambique (RENMOZ-2026), in Maputo, the minister explained that biofuels must be seen as part of the diversification of the national energy mix “especially when produced locally, on a competitive scale and with effective integration into national supply chains.”
About 80 per cent of Mozambique’s fuel imports pass through routes connected to the Strait of Hormuz, which means that the impact of the war in the Middle East is potentially disastrous for the country’s economy.
“Mozambique, which currently imports liquid fuels, is well aware of the economic impacts of this scenario. It means biofuels are not just about clean energy, it is about energy sovereignty, industrialization, agriculture, employment, environmental preservation, foreign exchange savings and economic resilience”, he said.
According to the minister, Mozambique possesses natural, agricultural and logistical conditions that place it in a favourable position to develop a national biofuel supply chain.
“Every percentage of ethanol blended into petrol and every percentage of biodiesel in diesel represents a lower volume of imported fossil fuel, reducing pressure on foreign exchange reserves and promoting greater value for domestic production, as well as greater market predictability”, he said.
However, he said, biofuel production also depends on economic and logistical factors “therefore the government is drawing up an action plan for a pilot project to produce and blend biofuels into petroleum products, involving all sectors within the biofuels value chain.”
Am/
