ADNOC has signed a 15-year Sales and Purchase Agreement (SPA) with Japan’s exploration and production (E&P) company, INPEX CORPORATION, to supply 1 million metric tons per annum (mtpa) of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the Ruwais LNG project.
The agreement was announced during a visit to Japan by Dr. Sultan Al Jaber, UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology. ADNOC Managing Director and Group CEO, and XRG Executive Chairman.
Dr. Sultan Al Jaber is leading a UAE delegation for meetings with senior Japanese government and business leaders to strengthen the longstanding energy partnership between the UAE and Japan and build on more than six decades of cooperation.
The agreement marks the first long-term LNG supply contract announced following the launch of ADNOC and XRG’s integrated global LNG marketing and trading platform.
Nasser Al Muhairi Acting CEO – ADNOC Downstream Industry, Marketing & Trading Chairman – Ruwais LNG
“This SPA with INPEX marks the first long-term LNG agreement announced following the launch of ADNOC and XRG’s integrated global LNG marketing and trading platform, demonstrating how we are bringing more LNG molecules, greater market access, and enhanced commercial flexibility to our customers. It builds on ADNOC’s decades-long energy partnership with Japan, advances the commercialization of Ruwais LNG, and reinforces strong market confidence in the project. As ADNOC and XRG target 47 mtpa of combined marketable LNG by 2035, Ruwais LNG will be a key source of reliable, flexible, and lower-carbon supply for customers in Asia and around the world.”
According to ADNOC, the agreement also strengthens its long-standing relationship with INPEX. It aligns with INPEX Vision 2035, announced in February 2025, under which the Japanese company plans to expand its LNG portfolio and increase supply flexibility by complementing production from its own projects.
INPEX is also an upstream partner of ADNOC, holding participating interests in several offshore and onshore concessions in Abu Dhabi.
The LNG supplied under the agreement will primarily come from the Ruwais LNG project, which is under development in Al Ruwais Industrial City in Abu Dhabi and is scheduled to begin commercial operations in 2028.
The company stated that around 90 percent of the Ruwais LNG project’s total production capacity of 9.6 mtpa has already been committed to international customers in Asia and Europe through long-term agreements.
The Ruwais LNG facility will be the first LNG export plant in the Middle East and Africa to operate on clean power. ADNOC said the project will use artificial intelligence and advanced technologies to improve safety and operational efficiency while reducing emissions.
In November 2024, ADNOC Gas announced that it expects to acquire ADNOC’s 60 percent stake in the Ruwais LNG project at cost, estimated at approximately $5 billion, in 2028.
The project will comprise two liquefaction trains with a combined production capacity of 9.6 mtpa and is expected to increase ADNOC Gas’ operated LNG production capacity to around 15 mtpa upon completion.
