08:00 AM EDT, 05/20/2024 (MT Newswires) -- (Corrects ADNOC's name in the headline, minor edits throughout.)

NextDecade ( NEXT ) said Monday the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, known as ADNOC, has acquired an 11.7% stake in phase 1 of the company's Rio Grande LNG export project in Texas, which is expected to produce a less carbon-intensive LNG.

The company said the phase 1 equity stake has been acquired through Global Infrastructure Partners' investment vehicle. It added that the acquisition also secures GIP's option for equity participation in future Trains 4 and 5 of the project.

Additionally, ADNOC and NextDecade ( NEXT ) have entered a 20-year offtake agreement for 1.9 million tons per annum of LNG from Rio Grande LNG Train 4.

The 20-year deal, based on a free-on-board arrangement and indexed to Henry Hub prices, is contingent on a Final Investment Decision, the company said.