ROME, May 14 (Reuters) - Italian energy group Edison

said on Wednesday it received the first cargo of

liquefied natural gas (LNG) from U.S. firm Venture Global ( VG )

, adding it would continue litigation over delays in its

delivery.

A cargo of 165,000 cubic metres of LNG from Venture Global's ( VG )

Calcasieu Pass export facility in Louisiana arrived at the

Italian port of Piombino ready to be regasified and fed into the

national network, Edison said.

The delivery marks the start of a contract Edison signed

with Venture Global ( VG ) in 2017, Edison's Executive Vice President

for Gas & Power Portfolio Management & Optimization said in a

statement.

Still, the arbitration Edison initiated two years ago at the

London Court of International Arbitration "for breach of

contractual terms by Venture Global ( VG ), continues", the statement

added.

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 to

commission the plant so it could profit from higher spot prices.

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

functioning as designed, takes months at many LNG facilities,

but the process dragged on at Calcasieu Pass due to several

unforeseen circumstances, Venture Global ( VG ) has said.

The U.S firm, the second-largest producer of LNG in the

country, has blamed the COVID-19 pandemic, two hurricanes and a

force majeure event triggered by issues with the facility's

power island for the extended commissioning.