Update, September 24: Argentina and the United States signed the agreement on the evening of September 23 as part of a broader framework worth up to $7 billion, the Andes-Atlantic Corridor.
Argentina and the United States are set to sign a financing agreement worth at least $6 billion, anchored by US government-backed support for the Argentina LNG project, Argentine officials traveling with President Milei at the UN General Assembly in New York said. The package covers infrastructure, energy and critical-minerals projects.
Foreign Minister Pablo Quirno and US Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau were scheduled to present the agreement Wednesday evening at Argentina’s consulate in New York, with the US Export-Import Bank (EXIM) and private American banks providing the bulk of the financing alongside the US Development Finance Corporation, officials said. YPF chief executive Horacio Marín and EXIM’s chief commercial officer, Sarah Whitten, were also expected to attend.
“In a sense, the EXIM Bank is financing a private company. It’s for a very important infrastructure and energy project for Argentina,” Quirno said, describing the mechanism. “Generally, what these kinds of banks also do is provide risk coverage to companies so they can access that financing.”
The flagship project behind the package is Argentina LNG, a joint venture between YPF, Italy’s Eni and the United Arab Emirates’ XRG to convert Vaca Muerta gas into liquefied natural gas for export using two floating liquefaction units planned off the Río Negro coast, with a combined capacity of 12 million tonnes a year. The consortium applied in August for incentives under RIGI, Argentina’s investment regime, tied to a cumulative investment of $51 billion, with a final investment decision expected by the end of the year.
Quirno said the broader goal was “to strengthen the relationship between the United States and Argentina,” adding that American banks were also involved in the project and that the financing reflected US companies’ interest in participating in Argentina’s energy and minerals sectors.
Argentine officials said the package includes roughly $7 billion earmarked for 2027 and extends beyond gas to critical-minerals supply chains and an AI-infrastructure initiative referred to internally as “Pax Silica,” part of a wider Washington push to lock in access to strategic resources and cement Argentina’s role as a hemispheric ally.
The deal comes as Argentina leans on its alignment with Washington on several fronts. At the UN, Quirno spent Tuesday sparring with Britain over the Malvinas (Falkland Islands).