Venture Global has lost a second arbitration over its long-term LNG supply contracts, after a tribunal ruled the U.S. developer breached its agreement with Portugal's Galp. The decision adds to a mounting legal bill for the Louisiana-based exporter and narrows the company's room to argue it acted lawfully when it diverted contracted cargoes to the spot market.

The ruling is the second unfavorable outcome for Venture Global among roughly half a dozen disputes brought by its long-term customers. BP won the other case against the U.S. company, according to the source material detailing the decisions. Shell and Spain's Repsol, by contrast, lost their arbitrations against Venture Global, and Italy's Edison resolved its dispute through a negotiated settlement.

Why did the customers sue?

Galp and its fellow claimants accused Venture Global of violating long-term supply contracts for liquefied natural gas in order to capture higher profits on the spot market. The lawsuits stem from the period when Venture Global sold cargoes destined for contract holders into a stronger spot market — a practice the claimants argue amounted to a breach of their offtake agreements.

The tribunal in the Galp case has now sided with the buyer. Venture Global could be liable for damages, though the source material does not state the amount of any award.

What does the scorecard look like?

The string of rulings and settlements now reads as follows:

• Galp (Portugal): Tribunal ruled Venture Global breached its contract — a loss for the U.S. company.
• BP: Won its dispute against Venture Global — the first unfavorable ruling for the exporter.
• Shell: Lost its arbitration against Venture Global.
• Repsol (Spain): Lost its arbitration against Venture Global.
• Edison (Italy): Settled its dispute with Venture Global.

The split verdicts show arbitrators have not read the disputed conduct in one consistent way, with different tribunals reaching opposite conclusions on materially similar claims from long-term offtakers.

Who else is watching?

The remaining claimants and Venture Global's future contract negotiations now carry the weight of two adverse rulings. Buyers weighing long-term offtake from Venture Global's expanding LNG platform will likely price in the litigation record — and push for tighter cargo-diversion language — after tribunals found in favor of Galp and BP.

For Galp, the win secures legal grounding for its claim that contracted volumes were withheld during a high-priced market window. For Venture Global, the liability picture remains partially open: damages in the Galp case have not been quantified in the available reporting, and any appeal or award-enforcement steps could extend the timeline.

What comes next?

The watch items are the size of the damages award in the Galp case and whether any outstanding disputes from the half-dozen claimants remain unresolved. A quantified award would give the market the first hard number for what the spot-market diversions ultimately cost Venture Global in legal liability — and would set a reference point for BP's already-decided claim as well.