YPF, Eni, XRG sign binding joint development agreement to advance Argentina LNG

This agreement formalizes XRG's inclusion in the Argentina LNG project, focusing on engineering, commercial, and financing activities to develop the Vaca Muerta shale gas and offshore liquefaction vessels, targeting FID in second-half 2026.

Feb. 12, 2026

Argentina’s YPF, Italy’s Eni YPF, and XRG, the international energy investment arm of ADNOC, signed a binding joint development agreement (JDA) to advance the Argentina LNG integrated gas and liquefaction project.

The JDA follows a non-binding framework agreement signed by the parties in November 2025.

The JDA is a milestone towards a final investment decision and establishes the workplan to progress the next stage of development, the companies said in a joint release. Under the agreement, the partners will begin front-end engineering design (FEED) and related activities, including engineering, technical structuring, and key commercial and financing workstreams.

The 12-million tonnes/year (tpy) Argentina LNG project is a fully integrated development combining upstream gas production from the Vaca Muerta shale basin with offshore liquefaction using two 6-million tpy floating LNG vessels.

This step “marks the formal inclusion of XRG into the project we have been developing together with Eni,” said Horacio Marín, president and chief executive officer, YPF. “We will now continue working very intensively to reach FID during the second half of 2026,” he continued.