Abu Dhabi National Oil Co PJSC (ADNOC), through its global investment arm XRG PJSC, has completed the purchase of an 11.7 percent stake in phase I of NextDecade Corp’s Rio Grande LNG project in Brownsville, Texas.
“The transaction was undertaken through an investment vehicle of GIP [BlackRock Inc’s Global Infrastructure Partners], with XRG acquiring a portion of GIP’s existing stake”, XRG said in a statement on its website.
“The transaction, initially announced in May 2024, is the company’s first gas infrastructure investment in the U.S., and reflects XRG’s long-term investment plans in the country”, XRG said.
“As LNG demand is projected to grow by 60 percent by 2050, the investment in Rio Grande LNG advances XRG’s strategy to build a leading global gas and LNG business to meet structural demand from industry, AI and broader economic growth”, it said.
XRG aims to build a top-five integrated gas and liquefied natural gas (LNG) business with a capacity of 20-25 million metric tons per annum (MMtpa) by 2035, as announced by the company June 3.
ADNOC launched XRG late last year to drive the United Arab Emirates’ expansion in the natural gas, low-carbon energy and chemical markets.
Rio Grande LNG’s first phase, which comprises the first three out of five federally approved liquefaction trains, is under construction.
ADNOC has also committed to buying 1.9 MMtpa from the fourth train. Earlier this month NextDecade and its co-venturers announced a positive FID (final investment decision) on train IV and a notice for contractor Bechtel Energy Inc to proceed to construction.
According to a Department of Energy (DOE) order August 13, 2020, amending Rio Grande LNG’s export authorization, the facility’s five trains each have a nominal capacity of 5.4 MMtpa. However, the Houston, Texas-based developer has said phase I would be capable of up to about 18 MMtpa.
Announcing the FID for train IV on September 9, NextDecade said the newly approved train will grow Rio Grande LNG’s capacity to around 24 MMtpa when the train starts production 2030.
In total, Rio Grande LNG can export up to 1.32 trillion cubic feet a year of natural gas equivalent – 27 MMtpa of LNG from trains I to V – to FTA and non-FTA countries until 2050. DOE granted authorization through orders first issued – later amended – August 2016 for the portion for countries with a free trade agreement (FTA) with the United States and February 2020 for the non-FTA portion.
While Rio Grande LNG’s construction permit is being reviewed by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) in response to a second remand from the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, the court in March 2025 modified the August 2024 remand to allow activities to continue, according to FERC.
As part of the ongoing review, FERC said July 31, 2025, it had issued a final supplemental environmental impact statement (SEIS) for Rio Grande LNG and the associated pipeline project owned by Enbridge Inc.
In a statement about the new SEIS, NextDecade said August 1, “FERC anticipates issuing a final order on the remand by November 20, 2025”.
To contact the author, email jov.onsat@rigzone.com
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