(Trinidad Express) Government has secured a 20-year lease from Venezuela to obtain gas from the Cocuina-Manakin field, says Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley.
Speaking at yesterday’s post-Cabinet news conference at the Office of the Prime Minister, Rowley said Minister of Energy Stuart Young had just returned from Venezuela with the good news.
“Cocuina has now been signed and sealed,” said Rowley.
He said this means that Trinidad and Tobago now has two substantial fields (including the Loran Manatee field) of proven gas available to ensure that the country may keep Point Lisas at an operational level and keep T&T in the hydrocarbon business.
He said having set the template, “we may be able to access other sources in eastern Venezuela which is still to be properly explored”.
The Prime Minister said the relationship between T&T and Venezuela is one of great value to this country.
“We have declared the Caribbean as a zone of peace and we trust that would be so for time immemorial,” he said.
He explained that there are three fields on the border of T&T and Venezuela. The Loran Manatee field is the main one, in which this country has a 23% stake.
Rowley said that T&T was able to get an agreement with Venezuela to export the gas from this country’s portion of the field. In doing this, he said there would be opportunities and jobs for locals.
“Because we have been able to get that agreement in Venezuela, one of our main constructing companies in Trinidad has got a future —TOFCO (Trinidad Offshore Fabricators Unlimited), that builds platforms,” he said.
The Prime Minister explained further that this country would be in “real trouble” if it does not have gas to operate the Point Lisas industries and the LNG plants.
He said Trinidad’s geology is one where the gas and oil occur in separate pools, unlike in the Middle East where there are huge reservoirs of thousands of units.
T&T’s proven reserves have considerably been reduced; to stay in the business, the Government must look down the road to ensure there is a gas supply, so the country does not run out and plants cannot operate, he said.
Young posted on his Facebook page: “July 24, 2024 was a historical and monumental day as we executed a number of agreements and obtained a licence from the government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela for the exploration and production of natural gas from the Cocuina part of the Manakin-Cocuina field. This achievement is unprecedented and has never been done in Trinidad and Tobago and Venezuela before for an across-border hydrocarbon field. NGC and bp will jointly operate this field. It is another significant achievement for the people of Trinidad and Tobago and Venezuela. Thank you for the privilege of representing our great country.”
‘An important
milestone’
David Campbell, bpTT president, said: “The award of this licence for the Cocuina field is an important milestone for Trinidad and Tobago and for bp. It will allow us to move forward with our planning for the development of these significant discovered resources as we work towards bringing more gas into Trinidad and Tobago’s existing gas infrastructure in this decade. The award of the licence would not have been possible without the significant diplomatic efforts by the government of Trinidad and Tobago and their leadership in driving strong collaboration between bp, the National Gas Company and the governments of Trinidad and Tobago and Venezuela.”
According to bp, the development of the discovered gas resources in the Manakin-Cocuina field is an important part of its long-term development plan for its Trinidad gas business.
bp will hold 80% equity in the Cocuina field, with NGC holding 20%.
Within the unitised Manakin-Cocuina field, 66% of the discovered gas resources have been allocated to Trinidad (the Manakin field) with 34% allocated to Venezuela (the Cocuina field).
The Energy Chamber of Trinidad and Tobago yesterday said it “warmly welcomed” the very positive news of the signing of the licence to develop the Cocuina gas field.
“The licence for the Manakin field on the Trinidad and Tobago side of the maritime boundary is already licensed to bp. The Energy Chamber congratulates the teams from bp, NGC and the Government of Trinidad and Tobago in completing the negotiations for these licences. Once developed, this cross-border field can provide significant volumes of natural gas to the LNG and petrochemical sectors in Trinidad and Tobago and help extend the life of our gas industry and create business opportunities and jobs for our citizens,” it stated.
