T&T government says Shell company re-confirms its intention to the country

The Trinidad and Tobago government says the Netherlands-based energy company, Shell, has re-confirmed its intention to sustain and grow competitive energy resources in the country.

A statement issued by the Office of the Prime Minister said Prime Minister Dr. Keith Rowley, who is heading a two-member delegation, held talks with Shell executives in the Hague to discuss the energy company’s current and future development projects in the twin-island republic.

“Both parties acknowledged the success of their continued collaboration which resulted in an increase in Shell’s production over the last five years since the company re-entered the upstream market in 2016,” the statement said.

It said this cooperation between the government and Shell unlocked projects such as Starfish, Barracuda, and Colibri and has resulted in an over 30 percent increase in production over the period, with current production of approximately 850 million standard cubic feet of gas today, a seven-year high for Shell Trinidad and Tobago.

“The teams also discussed the imminent conclusion of the commercial restructuring of Atlantic. This would enable future upstream developments, especially the Manatee project, which has the potential to bring online one of the most significant gas developments in recent years,” the statement said.

It said Prime Minister Rowley and Energy and Energy Industries Minister Stuart Young also received presentations on Shell’s global business on LNG, Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage (CCUS), and Hydrogen.

“The Shell team expressed their appreciation to the prime minister and energy minister for their continued cooperation in developing the country’s gas production and re-confirmed the company’s intention to sustain and grow competitive energy resources in Trinidad and Tobago.”

On Thursday, the two Trinidad and Tobago officials held talks with BP’s chief executive officer, Bernard Looney, at the energy company’s global headquarters in London.

“BP provided an update to Dr. Rowley on their plans for future gas production, including the sanctioning of new projects. The discussions also touched on the progress of the Atlantic LNG restructuring negotiations, which are expected to be finalized soon.

“Both parties reiterated their commitment to working together to ensure the future of Trinidad and Tobago’s energy sector,” the statement said.

Earlier this week, the Trinidad and Tobago government said the Swiss-based energy company, Proman, had reiterated a commitment to invest an estimated US$1.1 billion over the next ten years for major plant maintenance turnarounds in the Caribbean country.

Proman describes itself as one of the world’s largest methanol producers and a leading fertilizer producer globally, with operations and assets all over the world.