Argentina’s YPF says close to signing more LNG sales contracts

Argentina’s state-run YPF SA is close to signing several liquefied natural gas sales contracts for a proposed US$24-billion export plant, its chief executive said on Monday, a key step toward a green light for the facility.

The company will soon sign two to three 0.5 million to 1.5 million ton-per-year LNG deals, Chief Executive Officer Horacio Marìn said on the sidelines of the Gastech conference in Bangkok on Monday. The company aims to secure those deals before its making final investment decision on the project in November, he said.

Argentina LNG is a venture that includes Italy’s Eni SpA and Abu Dhabi’s XRG along with YPF. The three energy firms hold roughly equal equity stakes. An offshore LNG terminal on Argentina’s Atlantic coast, it would produce 12 million tons a year, making it one of the biggest floating facilities in the world.

The potential contracts come as the global LNG market is in upheaval after months of disruption in the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz, effectively choking off about a fifth of global supply of the super-chilled fuel. LNG buyers in Asia and elsewhere are looking to diversify away from the Middle East as a result, seeking to reduce future risk.