Logistics (MENA) 
Egypt Edition 
UAE Edition 
Saudi Edition 
MENA <> India Corridor 
Climate (MENA) 
Share
Read Full Issue 
Aramco to onboard 1.2 mn mtpa of LNG from NextDecade: Saudi Aramco inked a 20-year LNG sale and purchase agreement (SPA) with US LNG development firm NextDecade Corporation for the offtake of Rio Grande LNG facility’s Train 4 production, according to a statement (pdf). The investment ticket for the agreement was not clarified.
What’s on the cards: NextDecade Corporation will supply Aramco with some 1.2 mn mtpa of LNG over 20 years on a free-on-board basis. The agreement is still subject to a final investment decision, which is contingent on the Texas-based developer obtaining sufficient financing to develop Train 4 and the related infrastructure. The Rio Grande LNG export plant’s phase 1 is forecasted to be completed by early 2029 at a cost of USD 18 bn.
Rings a bell? Aramco signed a non-bindingagreement with US LNG development company NextDecade to supply 1.2 mtpa of LNG for 20 years back in June. Aramco had been in talks with NextDecade for a long-term gas purchase agreement from the company’s Texas-based Rio Grande facility.
REMEMBER- UAE’s Adnoc has stakes in the facility: The UAE’s Adnoc obtained an 11.7%stake in a Texas LNG export facility owned by NextDecade and signed a supply agreement last May. The stakes cover phase 1 of the project, which includes the first three liquefaction trains. Andoc has also inked a 20-year supply agreement for a Train 4.
Aramco?Texan LNG: Aramco signed a non-binding agreement to take a 25% stake in the second phase of Sempra’s Port Arthur LNG export plant in Texas back in June. The agreement would also include Aramco locking down five mn tons of LNG shipments annually from the plant for 20 years. The firm has also been involved in talks last year with Houston-based Tellurian over a potential stake purchase in the US firm’s 27.6 mtpa Driftwood LNG plant in Louisiana.
All part of Aramco’s LNG push: “This agreement is a major step in Aramco’s strategy to become a leading global LNG player,” Aramco’s upstream business president Nasir Al Naimi said back in June. Aramco has been pushing further into the LNG market lately as it seeks to compete for a market share in the flourishing gas market. It made its entry into the business last year with a minority stake acquisition in Australia’s MidOcean Energy.
