Madagascar and Russia Sign MoUs to Enhance Energy Security

On the sidelines of the International Security Forum in Moscow, Madagascar’s Prime Minister Mamitiana Rajaonarison and Russia’s Security Council Secretary Sergey Shoigu signed several memoranda of understanding (MoU) to enhance #EnergySecurity and foster #industrialization by establishing a Special Economic Zone (#SEZ) with a Strategic Fuel Storage Facility. These MoUs come in light of tensions in the Middle East and uncertainties surrounding petroleum supply through the Strait of Hormuz.

Madagascar’s west coast and Mozambique basically form the Mozambique Canal. Recently, huge amounts of natural gas reserves have been discovered off the coast of Mozambique, with some analysts hailing Mozambique as the ‘Qatar of Africa.’ Thus, the Mozambique Canal represents a future frontier where a substantial portion of the global energy is expected to transit.

Madagascar has oil reserves inland as well, which remain largely untapped. As one of the largest oil and gas producers in the world, Russia has the technical and financial capabilities to assist Madagascar.

As a first step, Russia will partner with Madagascar in building up its strategic energy storage to better withstand such shocks as caused by the US-Iran conflict. In return for its oil, Russia might be interested in gaining preferential access to Madagascar’s #CriticalMinerals. Thus, the SEZ would welcome investments in mineral processing and value addition.