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Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, Executive Chairman of Abu Dhabi-based XRG, said on 1 October 2026 at Argentina Week in Paris that the company backs Argentina’s ambition to become a major global LNG supplier. According to the Emirates News Agency (WAM), Al Jaber met Argentine President Javier Milei and joined a panel with YPF Chairman and CEO Horacio Marín and Eni CEO Claudio Descalzi.
WAM reported that the first phase of the Argentina LNG project is designed to produce 12 million tonnes per annum. In June 2026, XRG and Eni each agreed to acquire a 32% interest in three YPF-operated Vaca Muerta blocks — Meseta Buena Esperanza, Aguada Villanueva and Las Tacanas — with YPF retaining the remaining 36%. Completion is subject to customary regulatory approvals, and the blocks are expected to supply gas to the project.
Al Jaber described Vaca Muerta as the world’s second-largest shale gas resource and fourth-largest for shale oil, and said reforms including the RIGI investment framework were creating long-term stability for capital-intensive energy projects. His statement that the project would create more than 40,000 jobs is the executive’s own figure, not an independent estimate.
WAM also noted that the UAE and Argentina have launched negotiations on a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement. The announcement gives no final investment decision, project cost or date for first LNG cargoes.