US LNG exporter Venture seeks court order against Kiewit

Venture Global LNG Inc., a US liquefied natural gas developer, is requesting a court order to prevent the release of confidential information to Shell Plc amid contract disputes between the two companies over a facility in Louisiana.

The Arlington, Virginia-based company petitioned for a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction against engineering firm Kiewit Louisiana Co., according to a Aug. 2 filing with the Supreme Court of the State of New York. 

Venture Global alleges that Kiewit broke confidentiality obligations by disclosing thousands of pages of proprietary information to Shell, according to the filing. Kiewit helped to build the exporter’s Calcasieu Pass LNG plant in Louisiana and is also in separate arbitration with the company over the construction of the facility.

It’s the latest salvo by Venture Global amid disputes between the firm and some of the world’s biggest energy companies over contracts at Calcasieu Pass. Even though Calcasieu Pass started exporting LNG shipments in 2022, Venture Global says the facility remains in its commissioning phase until the end of this year. As a result, its shipments have been sold on the spot market rather than going to customers with long-term contracts. 

A Kiewit spokesperson said the company was evaluating the legal matter and declined to comment further. Shell didn’t immediately provide a comment.

Customers including Shell lodged arbitration cases against Venture Global, arguing they’ve been forced to buy higher-priced LNG shipments on the spot market to replace the missing supplies. In June, an administrative law judge determined that Venture Global must disclose some separate documents to Shell and the other Calcasieu Pass offtakers.