TotalEnergies, the French energy behemoth, is scrambling to free billions of dollars in frozen US funding for its natural gas project in Mozambique.

Jeune Afrique reported last week that the multinational wants the $4.7 billion loan from the US Exim Bank approved before President-elect Donald Trump takes office.

The bank granted the credit in 2019, but it was not implemented because Islamist violence in the Cabo Delgado region led Total to withdraw its workforce from the Afungi project. Total has since hired a consulting firm to handle its lobbying efforts in Washington.

It fears that the incoming administration would cause bureaucratic delays or set new constraints. The emergence of post-election violence in Mozambique has also prompted anxiety in Washington.

However, in a letter to US authorities on December 3, Total CEO Patrick Pouyanne sought to reassure Washington, stating that the security situation in Cabo Delgado had significantly improved.

Mozambique has reclaimed land from rebels with the support of Rwandan and southern African soldiers, allowing some displaced citizens to return home.

Exim Bank’s Transactional Risk Committee accepted a loan restart decision in February, but the board did not vote on it.

Total’s Mozambique project has received criticism from Democratic politicians who oppose American funding for fossil fuel ventures.