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Civitas Outlook
Topic
Economic Dynamism
Published on
Mar 20, 2026
Contributors
Michael Toth

Venture Global vs. Shell: How a Startup Won Big In LNG

Contributors
Michael Toth
Michael Toth
Research Director
Michael Toth
Summary

The recent rulings in favor of Venture Global are a win for the entrepreneurial dive behind America’s energy dominance.

Summary

The recent rulings in favor of Venture Global are a win for the entrepreneurial dive behind America’s energy dominance.

Listen to this article

New York City isn’t usually where energy headlines are made. But earlier this month, Manhattan judge Joel Cohen did just that when he sided with upstart liquefied natural gas (LNG) producer Venture Global over Shell in a multimillion-dollar contract dispute that offers a revealing glimpse into the entrepreneurial forces driving American energy dominance.

Over the past two decades, American oil and gas companies have redrawn the world’s energy map. Today shale gas fracked in West Texas is piped to the Gulf Coast, liquefied and shipped to energy-hungry countries around the world. Since 2015, the U.S. has gone from LNG importer to the world’s top LNG exporter.

The surge in domestic oil and gas production has significantly enhanced America’s foreign policy leverage. While consumers are feeling the pain of the hike in gas prices since the start of the Iran war, the economic fallout would be much worse if the U.S. weren’t the world’s dominant energy producer.

Read the full essay on RealClearMarkets.

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