LNG

NextDecade Corp., the company developing the Rio Grande LNG export plant on the north shore of the Brownsville Ship Channel in south Texas, has given a comprehensive update on strategic activities through the first quarter of 2024.

Baker Hughes, the US liquefied natural gas equipment-maker and energy services company, reported solid profits as revenues increased along with orders with an LNG cycle still forecast to extend for several years.

NextDecade Corp., the developer of the Rio Grande LNG export project in Texas, has teamed up with a New York investment fund and TotalEnergies to enable a final investment decision for the first three liquefaction Trains and with the French major buying 5.4 million tonnes per annum of cargoes and taking a large stake in NextDecade.

NextDecade Corp., the developer of the Rio Grande LNG export project on the Brownsville Ship Channel in Texas, has signed a long-term sale and purchase agreement with Galp Trading S.A. of Portugal.

NextDecade, based in Houston, said that under the 20-year deal Galp would purchase 1.0 million tonnes per annum of LNG indexed to the US benchmark Henry Hub gas price on a free-on-board (FOB) basis whereby the Portuguese supply their own ships.

“We are honored to have Galp, one of Portugal’s largest energy companies and a key player in the Iberian Peninsula, as our customer,” said Matt Schatzman, NextDecade's Chairman and Chief Executive.

“We look forward to helping Galp, as well as other European companies and their customers, meet their energy needs by offering a lower-cost, reliable source of LNG with lower carbon-intensity,” added Schatzman.

FID moves

NextDecade explained that it was targeting a positive final investment decision on the first three Trains of the Rio Grande project for the first quarter of 2023.

Further FIDs on the other permitted liquefaction Trains would follow thereafter for the venture with proposed 27 MTPA of output.

NextDecade has made progress with other SPAs during 2022, including one with ExxonMobil Corp.

The US major signed a 20-year supply deal with NextDecade at the end of July 2022 through its trading subsidiary in Asia.

Under that SPA, the US major’s Asia unit would purchase 1 MTPA of LNG supplied from the first two Trains of the Rio Grande facility.

The first Train is expected to start commercial operations as early as 2026.

NextDecade has also signed three supply agreement with Chinese companies, including a 20-year deal with China Gas Hongda Energy Trading Co., a wholly-owned subsidiary of China Gas Holdings.

That deal was also for 1 MTPA of LNG indexed to Henry Hub and delivered on a FOB basis.

NextDecade in April 2022 signed a 20-year SPA with the Singapore trading arm of ENN Group of China and another with China’s Guangdong Energy Group Natural Gas.

NextDecade Corp., the developer of the Rio Grande LNG export project on the Brownsville Ship Channel in Texas, said it was initiating a private placement of its Nasdaq-listed shares to 10 institutional investors as its proposed venture gathered pace with US and Chinese cargo sales agreements.

NextDecade, the US developer of the Rio Grande LNG export project along the Brownsville Ship Channel, has confirmed that a final investment decision for the venture would again be delayed, this time until the second half of 2022.

Nov 18 (LNGJ) - NextDecade Corp., developer of the Rio Grande LNG export project in Texas, said that after a competitive bid and contracting process it had selected Great Lakes Dredge and Dock Corp. to perform improvements near its planned facility on the Brownsville Ship Channel.

   “These improvements, which include deepening the Channel, will enhance commercial navigation into and out of the Port of Brownsville, ensuring the safe and reliable access of LNG carriers to NextDecade’s Rio Grande LNG facility and optimizing the ability of shallower draft traffic to pass LNG carriers in either direction in accordance with US Coast Guard guidelines,” the company explained. 

NextDecade Corp., the owner of the Rio Grande LNG export project near the port of Brownsville in Texas, said it had developed proprietary processes using proven technology to reduce carbon-dioxide emissions at the facility.

Two of the main US export projects on Gulf Coast of Texas, Rio Grande LNG and Port Arthur LNG, as well as the Costa Azul venture in Mexico, are heading for delays of at least a year.

The Rio Grande LNG export project being built by NextDecade Corp. on a 980-acre site in the Port of Brownsville in Texas has extended the validity dates to July 2020 for its fixed-price engineering contracts with Bechtel Inc. for the first three liquefaction Trains.