Updates on Argentina LNG
In an announcement that marks a decisive milestone for Argentina’s planned liquefied natural gas (LNG) export project from Vaca Muerta, YPF President and CEO Horacio Marín confirmed exclusively that in December the Emirati firm XRG —the international investment arm of ADNOC— could sign a binding agreement that until now existed only as a nonbinding framework between YPF and Italy’s Eni as part of the Argentina LNG project.
“We are very far along. I believe that in the coming weeks, still in December, we will be able to sign the binding agreement with ADNOC. That is the definitive step that will then allow us to close the project finance for the first phase, the first 12 million tons,” Marín said in an extensive interview with Shale24.
Marín said that while the signing had initially been expected during the first week of December, the delay is directly related to ADNOC’s need to process all project information. In this sense, the transition from a nonbinding agreement to a binding one is, for Marín, what justifies the delay.
“The binding agreement is what truly commits the parties. Once we have it signed, multilateral banks, export credit agencies and infrastructure funds will be able to commit the long-term debt and the equity bridge. Without that document there is no project finance. That’s why it’s so important that we finalize it this year. We are talking about several billion dollars that only activate once that paper is signed.”
“We are very far along. I believe that in the coming weeks, still in December, we will be able to sign the binding agreement with ADNOC. That is the definitive step that will then allow us to close the project finance for the first phase, the first 12 million tons,” Marín said.
Marín went further and outlined the immediate schedule after the signing: “With the binding agreement and financing in place, we will take the FID (final investment decision) for the first stage in the first half of next year, ideally the first quarter of 2026. From there, major civil works and construction of the first two liquefaction trains begin, with the goal of achieving first exported molecule in 2030–31.”
Up to now, the three companies had signed only a nonbinding framework agreement to explore ADNOC’s participation in the first phase of the Argentina LNG Project, with a capacity of 12 MTPA and projected expansion to 30 MTPA in later stages. Moving to a binding agreement transforms that exploration into a firm commitment and enables the closing of long-term project finance.
The entry of ADNOC —one of the world’s largest and most financially solid integrated oil companies— not only brings effectively unlimited capital, but also large-scale liquefaction expertise and direct access to major Asian buyers.
In Marín’s view, this step positions YPF and Eni to move steadily toward a final investment decision in 2026 and the start of major construction works in 2027, in what is already shaping up to be the most ambitious energy project in modern Argentine history.