Bechtel gets green light on $6.7B LNG project

Dive Brief:

Dive Insight:

Train 4 has an expected LNG production capacity of approximately 6 million tons per annum, bringing the total expected LNG production capacity under construction at Rio Grande LNG to approximately 24 MTPA.

The project and related infrastructure for Train 4 are projected to cost $6.7 billion, according to the news release. Of that total cost, Bechtel’s part in the construction of Train 4 will run to $4.77 billion, per the June announcement.

Bechtel’s part with the Rio Grande LNG project isn’t solely limited to Train 4 — alongside that job, NextDecade also tapped the builder for work on Train 5, a contract worth $4.32 billion. Combined, this comes to approximately $9 billion for the builder. In addition, the company is also building Phase 1 of the plant, a $12 billion job that includes the first three trains.

NextDecade and its partners have completed the commercialization of Train 5 and anticipates a positive final investment decision in the fourth quarter of 2025, per the release. 

“The global call for additional natural gas infrastructure continues to be strong, and we are well positioned to meet this growing demand for cleaner energy, with approximately 24 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) of expected LNG production capacity currently under construction, Train 5 nearing a positive FID, and significant additional expansion capacity under development at the Rio Grande LNG site,” said Matt Schatzman, NextDecade’s CEO, in the news release.

Indeed, in the U.S., the Trump administration has taken favorable steps for large energy projects, including efforts to speed up permitting, via changes to the National Environmental Policy Act and an order to embrace technology in the federal permitting process.

With that timeline, NextDecade expects the guaranteed substantial completion date for Train 4 in the second half of 2030 and Train 5 in the first half of 2031.