By Curtis Williams

(Reuters) - BP Plc is set to mark a significant milestone as it prepares to load its inaugural shipment of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the Calcasieu Pass plant, owned by Venture Global in Louisiana. According to data from LSEG, this pivotal event is scheduled to take place on Wednesday. The vessel chartered by BP, known as the British Mentor, is poised to dock at the Calcasieu Pass port, signifying the first cargo received by BP under a supply contract that has been in place for several years.

This moment comes more than three years after Venture Global commenced LNG sales from the facility, initially opting to sell the gas on the spot market before entering into long-term contracts. In a related development, Galp Energia, an international energy company, reported earlier on Wednesday that it had successfully lifted its first cargo from the Calcasieu Pass plant. This shipment marks the official commencement of a substantial 20-year supply agreement that Galp signed back in 2018, which guarantees the delivery of 1 million tonnes of LNG annually from the facility.

Galps cargo was loaded onto a vessel named the Gaslog Wellington, as captured by LSEG data. Together, these two shipments represent the first exports since Venture Global completed the commissioning process of the Calcasieu Pass plant on April 15. Following this news, shares of Venture Global experienced a notable surge, climbing more than 10% during early afternoon trading sessions.

Venture Global has established itself as the second-largest LNG producer within the United States, playing a crucial role in elevating the U.S. to its current status as the worlds leading exporter of supercooled natural gas. However, the timeline for Venture Global to deliver LNG to its contracted clients faced significant delays, resulting in a protracted and often contentious struggle with several major companies including BP, Galp, Shell, Orlen, Edison, and Repsol. These companies accused Venture Global of intentionally postponing the commissioning of the plant to capitalize on higher spot market prices.

In response to these criticisms, Venture Global has attributed the delays to a series of unfortunate events, including the global pandemic, the impact of two hurricanes, and a force majeure event related to complications with the facilitys power island. Typically, the commissioning process, which involves ensuring that all systems within a new plant operate as intended, can take only a few months at many LNG facilities. The extended timeline at Calcasieu Pass has raised questions about operational efficiency and reliability in the sector.

As the energy landscape continues to evolve, the successful loading of these initial cargoes from the Calcasieu Pass facility is indicative of Venture Global's potential to meet its long-term commitments and solidify its position in the growing LNG market.

(Reporting by Vallari Srivastava in Bengaluru and Curtis Williams in Houston; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli and Leslie Adler)