We are investing $18.4 billion in our phase one of our Rio Grande LNG facility, and it's the largest private investment in a greenfield energy project in US history.
And that's just for phase one. Phase two will be down the road. Why we chose Brownsville? Number one it is strategically located area. We have a deepwater port, we have easy access to the Gulf of Mexico and to world markets. We also have easy access to gas supply out of the Permian Basin and out of the Eagle Ford shale. So we're not constrained as some of the plants are in Louisiana of getting their gas supply.
So that is, I think, a couple of reasons why, but then also the workforce. You know, there's a lot of people that really want jobs in the Rio Grande Valley. And when I talk to people… I was talking to some bankers a couple of weeks ago, and they said what is the most consistent issue you hear about? And I said, I'm not trying to be facetious, clearly the environment is a big issue. Making sure we're managing that is important, but the most significant issue I hear about is where are the jobs and when are they starting? And I think if you look at the Rio Grande Valley, it has the highest unemployment rate in Texas. But what's even I think more concerning is that it has one of the higher underemployment rates in not only the state of Texas, but in the United States. So where people have to have two or three jobs just to make ends meet. Our facility during construction will have a peak workforce of 5,000 people and during operations which will go on for 40, 50,60, 75 years, it'll be roughly 350 to 400 long term, well-paying jobs.
Editor’s Note: The above commentary was provided by David Keane, senior vice president for policy and corporate affairs at NextDecade. Keane made the comments at a recent YTexas event. He was asked what caused NextDecade to invest in Brownsville and what are some of the strategic benefits of being in that geographical region.
