Italy's Eni signs LNG deal in Mozambique, raising hopes of gas boom

Italian energy company Eni signed an $8-billion deal on Thursday to develop a gas field off the coast of Mozambique, the first of a series of projects that could transform the poor African nation into a major energy supplier to Asia. Developing the Coral South field, discovered in May 2012 and operated by Eni, requires building six subsea wells connected to a floating facility capable of producing about 3.4-million tonnes of liquefied natural gas (LNG) per year, Eni said.