Chesapeake Energy Corp. and trading house Gunvor Group Ltd. said on March 6 that their subsidiaries had signed a framework agreement that would ultimately supply up to 2 million tonnes per annum of LNG over a 15-year period.

Chesapeake would source the gas from the Haynesville Shale. The two companies will jointly select the “most optimal liquefaction facility” in the U.S. to liquefy gas produced by Chesapeake and deliver the LNG to Gunvor on a free-on-board basis with a targeted start date in 2027. 

The LNG purchase price will be indexed to Japan Korea Marker for the 15-year period under the framework partnership, called a “heads of agreement.” The agreement is non-binding.

Chesapeake President and CEO Nick Dell'Osso said the agreement reflects the “powerful combination of the premium rock, returns, and runway of our competitively positioned Haynesville natural gas assets combined with the strength of our balance sheet and financial position to securely supply global LNG markets.”

Dell’Osso described Gunvor as a leading global commodity and energy logistics company with a track record of delivering independently certified reliable, affordable, lower carbon LNG to markets in need. 

“Today marks an important initial step on our path to being LNG ready and we look forward to entering into additional agreements while export capacity continues to come online," Dell’Osso said.

The agreement was entered into by subsidiaries Guvnor Singapore Pte Ltd. and Chesapeake Energy Marketing LLC.