The US Export-Import Bank has issued a non-binding indicative term sheet for up to $6 billion in financing for Argentina's first liquefied natural gas export project, a $51 billion venture led by state energy company YPF alongside Italy's Eni and Emirati firm XRG. The facility arrives under the newly launched Andes-Atlantic Corridor, a bilateral infrastructure initiative that positions US government agencies to co-finance projects with private capital. For President Javier Milei, the EXIM backing represents a tangible signal that his push to attract foreign infrastructure investment is gaining traction in Washington.
The corridor and the terms
EXIM's term sheet is explicitly tied to the procurement of American goods and services required to build out the project's infrastructure and production capacity. The bank's involvement does not commit final capital; it sets parameters for a potential loan that would be drawn against US-sourced contracts. The $6 billion figure sits against a total project cost of $51 billion, meaning the US agency would cover roughly twelve percent of the overall spend if the facility is fully utilized. No break fee, commitment fee, or maturity profile was disclosed in the State Department announcement.
US contractors already lined up
Two major US-linked contracts have already been awarded ahead of a final investment decision. McDermott secured the engineering, procurement, construction, and commissioning package for the natural gas liquids fractionation and gas treatment facility. Separately, Pumpco, a MasTec subsidiary, together with Bonatti and Contreras Hnos., won an EPC contract valued at more than $1 billion for the export pipeline system. Both awards are conditioned on the partners reaching FID, which they target by year end.
The RIGI application and what comes next
The consortium applied last month for entry into Argentina's Large Investment Incentive Regime, known as RIGI, a framework designed to provide fiscal and regulatory stability for capital-intensive projects. Approval would lock in tax, customs, and foreign-exchange terms for the life of the investment. The project's architecture calls for an integrated value chain: upstream development of Vaca Muerta shale gas, transportation and processing infrastructure, and two floating liquefaction units offshore Río Negro province with combined capacity of 12 million tonnes per year. A final investment decision before January 2027 remains the critical milestone; until then, EXIM's term sheet and the awarded contracts remain contingent.