US EXIM issues up to US$6bn indicative financing term sheet for Argentina LNG

The Export-Import Bank of the United States has issued a non-binding indicative term sheet for up to US$6bn of financing for Argentina LNG, placing export-credit support behind procurement for a proposed US$51bn integrated gas-export project in Vaca Muerta.

Argentina LNG is being developed by Argentine energy group YPF with Italy’s Eni and Abu Dhabi-based XRG. The proposed EXIM financing is intended to support purchases of US goods and services required for infrastructure development and production, according to a US government fact sheet released alongside the launch of the Andes-Atlantic Corridor.

The distinction between an indicative term sheet and committed finance is important. EXIM has not announced a final US$6bn loan, guarantee or disbursement. The term sheet is explicitly non-binding, meaning the amount represents potential project-specific financing rather than capital already available to draw.

The project includes gas production from Vaca Muerta, processing and transport infrastructure and LNG export capacity. US contractor McDermott has been awarded engineering, procurement, construction and commissioning work for a natural-gas-liquids fractionation and gas-treatment facility. Pumpco, a MasTec subsidiary, together with Bonatti and Contreras Hnos., has also been awarded an export-pipeline engineering, procurement and construction contract valued at more than US$1bn, subject to the project’s final investment decision.

The term sheet sits within a broader US-Argentina Build the Future Framework signed on 23 September. EXIM said that framework is intended to mobilise financing of up to US$7bn through 2027 across areas including energy, critical minerals, power grids, digital infrastructure and advanced technologies. The US$7bn figure is therefore a multi-sector framework ceiling and should not be added to the US$6bn Argentina LNG term sheet as though the two were separate committed facilities.

For the export-finance market, the project provides a sizeable example of how official export credit can be used to support procurement inside a much larger infrastructure financing requirement. The proposed EXIM amount could cover only part of Argentina LNG’s US$51bn estimated investment and remains dependent on the project and financing progressing beyond the indicative stage.

Pricing, maturity, security and the final mix of EXIM financing instruments have not been disclosed. The project also remains subject to a final investment decision, so neither the financing nor the associated US procurement should be treated as fully closed.