Exxon Mobil LNG Asia Pacific signed a 20-year sale and purchase agreement (SPA) with NextDecade Corp. to purchase 1 million metric tonnes per annum of LNG from the Rio Grande LNG export project, according to a press release on July 27.

Located in Brownsville, Texas, NextDecade's Rio Grande project will deliver the LNG supply from the first two trains when the project commences commercial operations as early as 2026.

The company has yet to make a final investment decision on up to three trains from the project but anticipates a decision in the second half of 2022, with future final investment decision for its remaining LNG trains following.

The Rio Grande project is currently expected to produce approximately 27 million tonnes per annum of LNG spread throughout five trains.

“LNG will play an increasingly important role in helping society reduce emissions during the energy transition,” ExxonMobil Upstream senior vice president of LNG Peter Clarke commented in the release. “We look forward to working with NextDecade to continue growing ExxonMobil’s LNG portfolio and delivering the lower-emissions energy the world needs.”