NextDecade’s Rio Grande LNG to Receive $356M in Senior Loans
The funding will be put toward the financing of NextDecade’s LNG trains at the Rio Grande LNG export facility in Brownsville, TX.
The NextDecade Corporation’s subsidiary, Rio Grande LNG (RGLNG), is subject to a credit agreement with lenders for $356 million in senior loans to fund a portion of Phase 1 at NextDecade’s 27 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) Rio Grande LNG export facility.
A one-time advance for $356 million was granted by the lender group on Sept. 15, 2023, resulting in the reduction of commitments outstanding under RGLNG’s current term loan facilities for Phase 1 from $11.1 billion to below $10.8 billion. The loans will mature in July 2033 and will gather interest at a fixed rate of 6.72%. These loans will be ranked on equal footing to RGLNG’s existing loan facilities—a $500 million working capital facility and $700 million of 10-year senior notes granted during the final investment decision for Phase 1.
NextDecade’s secured funding adheres to the strategy outlined for Phase 1 of RGLNG: extending and staggering debt maturities, diversifying sources of capital, reducing bank capital over time to provide capacity for future LNG expansions, and minimizing exposure to interest rates. Currently, RGLNG’s fixed-rate debt and executed interest rate swaps have limited the exposure to volatile interest rates for more than 80% of the debt expected to be incurred during Phase 1 construction.
