Edison confident in positive outcome of Venture Global LNG arbitration

The chief executive of Italian utility Edison said that it is confident in a favorable outcome of an arbitration between Venture Global, a U.S. supplier of liquefied gas, expected to be completed by the end the year.

Edison is among several European energy firms, including Shell, BP, and Galp that have filed arbitration cases claiming Venture Global intentionally failed to fulfill its supply contracts by dragging their feet when commissioning a plant so they could profit from higher prices.

Venture Global said that the Calcasieu Pass process took longer than expected due to several unforeseen factors.

Edison's CEO Nicola Monti said, on the sidelines a presentation of the company in Milan: "From our perspective, we believe we are completely right...We think there is a very clear proof."

Venture Global has started delivering cargoes, including Edison, to its long-term clients, according to a Venture Global spokeswoman on Thursday.

The spokesperson said, "We remain confident in our position as we continue to participate in confidential arbitration proceedings."

Edison received its LNG cargo from Venture Global at the end of May, nearly two years after signing a contract with the U.S. provider in 2017.

Venture Global will supply 1.4 billion cubic meters of gas to Italy each year as part of this agreement.

Venture Global started operations at its Calcasieu Pass plant three years ago. It is now on course to become the biggest U.S. LNG firm if it gives its third LNG project CP2 the green light this year.

Venture Global's share price fell 1.5% to $11.80 in the early trading.

Monti, Edison's spokesperson, said that Edison imports LNG also from Qatar, Libya Algeria and Azerbaijan. It is interested in increasing its supply from Qatar and the United States, as both countries have increased capacity on the market.

Ronan Lory (chief financial officer at Edison) said that new contracts with U.S. suppliers of LNG could begin in 2028-2029.

Monti stated that "Italy was dependent on Russia to the tune of 40% of its imports, but now Algeria is their preferred supplier. There is still room for diversification."

Edison will spend 1.2 billion euro ($1.36 billion), out of 10 billion euros, between 2023 and 2024 to expand its renewable and flexible generation portfolio, customer value-added service, and gas and green gas.

(source: Reuters)