MILAN, May 29 (Reuters) - The chief executive of Italian

utility Edison said on Thursday he was confident of a

positive outcome in arbitration involving U.S. liquefied natural

gas supplier Venture Global ( VG ), expected by the end of the

year.

Edison is one of several European energy companies,

including Shell, BP and Galp, that

have filed arbitration claims saying Venture Global ( VG ) deliberately

failed to fulfil its supply contracts, dragging its feet when

commissioning one of its plants so it could profit from higher

spot prices.

Commissioning, or making sure a new plant's systems are

functioning as intended, can take months, but the process

dragged on at Calcasieu Pass due to a number of unforeseen

circumstances, Venture Global ( VG ) has said.

"From our point of view, we think we are totally right... We

think there is very clear evidence," Edison's Nicola Monti said

on the sidelines of a company presentation.

Edison received its first cargo of liquefied natural gas

(LNG) from Venture Global ( VG ) in mid-May, two and a half years after

it had initially agreed under a long-term contract signed with

the U.S. supplier in 2017.

Italy's biggest LNG importer will receive 1.4 billion cubic

metres of the gas from Venture Global ( VG ) each year under the

agreement.

Edison also imports LNG from Qatar, Libya, Algeria and

Azerbaijan and it is interested in increasing supply from both

Qatar and the United States as the two countries bring

additional capacity to the market, Monti said.

New contracts with U.S. LNG suppliers could start in

2028-2029, Edison's Chief Financial Officer Ronan Lory said.

"Italy used to be dependent on Russia for 40% of its gas

imports and now Algeria is its privileged supplier, there is

room for more diversification," Monti said.

Between 2023 and 2024, Edison invested 1.2 billion euros

($1.36 billion) of the 10 billion euros earmarked by 2030 to

expand renewable and flexible generation, value-added services

for customers, and its gas and green gas portfolio.

($1 = 0.8853 euros)