US-based oil and gas exploration and production (E&P) company Kosmos Energy has announced the start of commercial operations at the Greater Tortue Ahmeyim (GTA) liquefied natural gas (LNG) project offshore Mauritania and Senegal.

The floating LNG (FLNG) production unit Gimi has reached commercial operations date (COD) for the 20-year Lease and Operate Agreement with the GTA project, the NYSE/LSE-listed Kosmos Energy said in a statement.

The Gimi FLNG with a nameplate capacity of 2.7mn tonnes per year (tpy), owned and operated by global maritime infrastructure firm Golar LNG, is leased to the GTA project as part of its midstream infrastructure.

“The COD milestone marks a major achievement for one of Africa’s deepest offshore developments which introduce Mauritania and Senegal as LNG exporters,” Golar LNG said in a statement on June 23.

Partners in the GTA LNG project for the upstream development include UK supermajor BP (operator with 56% shareholding), Kosmos Energy (27%), Senegalese national oil company (NOC) Petrosen with 9% interest, and Mauritanian NOC Société Mauritanienne des Hydrocarbures (SMH) with 8%.

The midstream infrastructure, including the FLNG facility, is owned separately through a joint venture (JV) partnership that includes BP (60%) and Kosmos (30%) as commercial investors, and Petrosen and SMH holding a combined 10% interest.

The GTA LNG project is one of the deepest offshore developments in Africa which extracts gas from reservoirs situated approximately 120 km offshore, at a depth of 2,850 metres. With recoverable natural gas resources of about 15 trillion cubic feet, or 425bn cubic metres (bcm), it has been declared “a project of strategic national importance” by the governments of Mauritania and Senegal.

The final investment decision for Phase 1 of the GTA project was achieved in 2018. In February 2025, the partners announced first LNG production, followed by the first LNG cargo in April, as reported by NewsBase at the time.

According to Kosmos Energy, the second and third LNG cargo were exported in May and early June respectively and a fourth cargo is currently loading. “The fifth cargo is expected at the start of the third quarter. With this expected cargo timing, Kosmos forecasts 3.5 gross cargos in the second quarter,” the company said in the statement.

Kosmos also announced ramped up LNG production volumes to a level equivalent to the annual contracted volumes of about 2.4mn tonnes per year (tpy), or around 90% of nameplate capacity of 2.7mn tpy. “Achieving COD and the recent ramp up in cargo lifting activity highlights continued strong cooperation between the project partners and Golar,” Kosmos said.

LNG production is expected to reach 5mn tpy in Phase 2 of the GTA LNG project, positioning Mauritania and Senegal as key players in the global LNG market.

Kosmos Energy has a strong presence in Africa with diversified oil and gas production from its deepwater assets offshore Ghana, Equatorial Guinea, Mauritania and Senegal. The company also holds exploration interests in Namibia’s Orange Basin, where it is targeting large-scale oil prospects.