Reuters reported that Eni announced its request for front-end engineering and design proposals in a local Mozambique newspaper.
The reports said the company was looking to exports its recent finds in East Africa to energy-starved Asia.
Eni holds a controlling stake in the gas-rich Area 4 field in the Rovuma basin.
As part of its development in the country, the company plans to build on onshore and offshore gas liquefaction plants aimed at Asian markets.
Eni said earlier this year it plans to deploy two FLNG vessels and a number of onshore trains to develop the Mamba field.
A final investment decision is expected before the end of 2015, with production start-up due in 2020.
In February, Eni upstream chief operating officer Claudio Descalzi told analysts that one FLNG vessel would be installed at the Coral discovery, along with the two planned for Mamba.
He said it plans to jointly develop with Anadarko who also operates in the region.
Eni’s share of Mamba stands at 50 trillion cubic feet of in-place gas, while about 35 Tcf is held in discoveries solely held in Area 4.
Descalzi said this was enough gas to support annual liquefaction capacity of 70 million tonnes.