Mozambique petroleum legal framework : comparative assessment of Mozambique stabilization clauses

• Autor(a) principal: Mendes, Tiago Arouca
• Data de Publicação: 2021
• Tipo de documento: Dissertação
• Idioma: eng
• Título da fonte: Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos)
• Texto Completo: http://hdl.handle.net/10400.14/35087
• topic: Domínio/Área Científica::Ciências Sociais::Direito

This study identifies and critically analyzes the evolution of stabilization clauses in international petroleum contracts entered between the Host Government (“HG”) and International Oil Companies (“IOCs”) with a focus on Mozambique. It then compares Mozambique’s stabilization provisions to those in three other African countries that have an active oil and gas industry. All four countries seek foreign investment in their oil and gas sectors. Foreign investors, in turn, seek to mitigate the many legal risks that arise in contracts signed with HGs as sovereigns. Investors look for stabilization and arbitration provisions in Petroleum Exploration & Production Contracts (“EPCs”) that increase the security of their investments. The article finds that Mozambique offers considerable security in its contracts compared to Angola, Ghana and Tanzania. Only Ghana offers a similar degree of stabilization in its contracts as Mozambique offers. The Angolan government does not resort to many of these stabilization mechanisms, probably because of the maturity of its petroleum industry, despite presenting quite a risky profile when compared to the other countries. Tanzania still has a long way to go in offering security to investors through stabilization clauses.