Venture Global to Pay BP Damages After Calcasieu Pass Arbitration Decision

By Kelly Cloonan

Venture Global said BP was issued an award in an arbitration case with the company and it settled another with a different customer, marking the latest decisions related to operation of the U.S. natural gas exporter's Calcasieu Pass facility.

The company said BP on Wednesday was issued a partial final award by the International Chamber of Commerce's International Court of Arbitration, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday.

The award found that Venture Global had breached its obligations to declare a commercial operation date at its Calcasieu Pass facility in Louisiana in a timely manner and act as a "reasonable and prudent operator" pursuant to the companies' sale-and-purchase agreement, along with other obligations.

BP is seeking damages of more than $1 billion, among other remedies, according to the filing.

The remedies will be determined in a separate damages hearing, which is expected to happen in 2026, Venture Global said. A final award is expected to follow.

Venture Global said it is disappointed by the decision, which it believes contradicts findings from its prior arbitration involving Shell, which it settled back in August.

The company said it is evaluating all available options in response to the tribunal's ruling and will continue to vigorously defend its position.

Venture Global separately reached a resolution with a sale-and-purchase-agreement customer related to an arbitration proceeding concerning the Calcasieu Pass facility and will continue to supply the customer with U.S. liquefied natural gas.

The company remains committed to its long-term contractual relationships, it said.

Venture Global has been caught in a legal fight with some of the world's biggest oil-and-gas companies for about two years. Shell and other players have pursued billions of dollars in arbitration cases against the company, claiming it enriched itself at their expense by withholding cargoes of LNG after Russia's invasion of Ukraine sent natural-gas prices soaring. The customers say Venture Global instead sold the cargoes on the spot market and raked in hefty profits.

Write to Kelly Cloonan at kelly.cloonan@wsj.com