Mubadala Energy, an arm of one of Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth funds, signed a deal on Thursday with energy investor Kimmeridge that will give it stakes in gas assets in the United States, marking its entry into the market as part of its growth plans.
The deal to buy 24.1% of Kimmeridge’s SoTex HoldCo will give Mubadala Energy access to Kimmeridge’s unconventional gas production in Texas and to a liquefied natural gas export project in Louisiana, which is expected to have a final investment decision later this year and first offtake in 2029, Mubadala Energy said in a statement.
The Louisiana LNG project is developing a 9.3 million metric tons per annum liquefaction and export facility.
Mubadala Energy said U.S. LNG is expected to constitute a third of world supply of the superchilled fuel by 2050, citing Wood Mackenzie data. The investment gives it a foothold in that market, which it said would be supported by strong demand, including for artificial intelligence data centres.
Financial details of the deal were not disclosed.
“As our first major investment in the U.S. this transaction offers a significant platform for future growth in one of the world’s most important energy hubs,” Mansoor Mohamed Al Hamed, Mubadala Energy’s managing director and chief executive, said in a statement.
“The investment also highlights our strong position to accelerate our expansion across the gas value chain and build on our strategic international portfolio.”
Kimmeridge Texas Gas has net production of 500 million cubic feet equivalent per day, expected to grow to 1.5 billion cubic feet equivalent per day by 2031, Mubadala Energy said.
Mubadala Energy has assets in 11 countries, mainly in the Middle East and North Africa, Southeast Asia and Russia. Its portfolio, which is about 70% gas, has production of roughly 370,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day.
The deal comes as U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright begins a tour of Gulf Arab countries in the UAE.
(Reporting by Yousef Saba. Editing by Mark Potter )