A subsidiary of Sempra has potentially netted another offtaker for two of its proposed Gulf Coast liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects as a European chemical manufacturer moves to secure natural gas supply.

Sempra map

Sempra Infrastructure, the LNG and renewable infrastructure arm of the San-Diego based company, said it had a 1.4 million metric ton/year (mmty) heads of agreement with a subsidiary of the UK’s Ineos Group Ltd.

Ineos Energy Chairman Brian Gilvary, formerly of BP plc, said the agreement was a “major step forward” for the company during a transformative time for the energy industry.

“Long-term supply from Ineos Energy will help alleviate the structural energy issues in Europe,” Gilvary said.

The latest agreement also could be an entry point to the LNG market for Ineos, a big industrial gas consumer. Through its trading subsidiary, the company said it could procure LNG from partners like Sempra and sell supplies to other industrial users in Europe.

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Sempra Infrastructure CEO Justin Bird said the latest agreement also was a sign of “momentum in advancing our next generation of LNG export facilities,” which would be needed to meet global demand for U.S. gas.

Under the nonbinding agreement, the companies could work toward a 20-year contract for LNG to be delivered on a free-on-board basis from Sempra’s Port Arthur LNG project and Cameron LNG Phase 2 expansion project.

The 13.5 mmty Port Arthur facility is permitted but remains unsanctioned after several delays. Sempra recently fetched a preliminary 2.25 mmty offtake agreement with German utility RWE AG for Port Arthur. Polish Oil & Gas Co. also signed a preliminary agreement for 3 mmty that could come from Cameron Phase 2 and Port Arthur.