Italy’s Edison welcomes inaugural LNG cargo from Louisiana plant

Italian utility company Edison has received its first liquefied natural gas (LNG) shipment from the export facility in Cameron Parish, Louisiana, operated by U.S.-based LNG export project developer Venture Global.

As disclosed by the Italian firm, two weeks after loading the gas at the Calcasieu Pass plant, the LNG carrier Elisa Aquila arrived in Italy and unloaded approximately 165,000 liquid cubic meters (cbm) of LNG at the Piombino terminal. Following regasification, the gas will be fed into the national network.

“The start of the first long-term LNG contract with the United States marks a fundamental step in the security of Italian energy supply and in the strategy of diversification and review of our industrial portfolio,” said Fabio Dubini, Executive Vice President, Gas & Power Portfolio Management & Optimization of Edison.

Edison said it will import 1.4 billion cubic meters of natural gas per year (equivalent to 1 million tons of LNG) from the Calcasieu Pass plant under a long-term contract with Venture Global signed in 2017. The Italian player plans to use its two 174,000-cbm LNG carriers to deliver a total of 14 cargoes per year.

The new supply route is expected to strengthen Edison’s position in the Italian market. The company claims to meet 23% of domestic demand thanks to its imports from Qatar (6.4 billion cbm), Libya (4.4 billion cbm), Algeria (1 billion cbm), Azerbaijan (1 billion cbm), and the United States (1.4 billion cbm).

Venture Global’s Calcasieu Pass LNG project came into commercial operation on April 15, 2025, right on schedule. Portugal’s Galp claimed to have lifted the first LNG cargo on the same day.