NOC Heritage seeks a new CEO

Jun 21 2022

Heritage Petroleum is recruitng a new Chief Executive Officer to replace Arlene Chow who is retiring.

The appointee will report to the Chairman of the Board of Directors and provide a vision and strategic leadership for the organisation’s success. In September 2019, Chow was appointed as interim CEO after American Mike Wylie returned to the US for cancer treatment. Wylie was initially appointed in 2018 following former State oil company Petrotrin’s restructuring into upstream and downstream operations.

Wiley was then retained by Heritage after a lengthy search by international recruitment company, Egon Zehnder International, between June 28, 2018 and August 21, 2018 but was fired after a protracted sick leave for over two months. Chow, who was then appointed temporarily to replace Wylie, was the Chief Operating Officer of Atlantic LNG up to her retirement in December 2018.

According to the media advertisement the successful CEO will drive growth and efficiency across the company’s operations, work closely with all stakeholders to develop and implement business objectives, maximise shareholder value, and operate a high performing, business-oriented, and customer- driven organisation whilst assuring its sustainability through complying with State regulatory standards and deploying an environmental, social, and governance (ESG) agenda. Candidates, must have a demonstrable track record in a senior leadership position in a complex, integrated energy company, preferably in the oil and gas sector.

He/she must have a strong commercial orientation and proven skills in interacting with the Board of Directors to execute and fulfil governance functions, driving major transformations, leading a high-performance culture, and managing relationships with key stakeholders including Joint Venture partners, Ministry of Energy, other State Agencies, and Oil and Gas companies.

The preferred candidate should have expert knowledge and understanding of the local and international petroleum industry, and must be familiar with the gas and oil business and economics in a global context.
Applicants should hold a Masters or Graduate degree in Engineering, Geosciences, Oil and Gas Management, Finance, or other relevant degree. A Masters of Business Administration would be an asset.
The CEO should have at least 20 years’ experience in general management with at least 10 years at the executive level in the oil and gas industry.

Heritage is the country’s largest oil producer with both onshore and offshore operations and participates in joint ventures, consortia and farm outs. Hopefully, the new broom would be advised to promote divestment of state assets to generate revenue for all public services and create a share-holding democracy during the transition.

 

 

Heritage Petroleum profit of $2.4 billion

May 28 2022

After paying more than $1.27 billion in taxes, Heritage Petroleum Co Ltd recorded a net profit of $682.7 million last year, according to its financial statement for the year ended September 30, 2021.

“Against the backdrop of strengthening demand for crude and higher market prices in 2021, Heritage and its subsidiaries (Heritage, the company) have continued to deliver strong earnings and cash generation for 2021,” chairman Michael Quamina stated.

Heritage recorded revenue of $6.8 billion for the year which was driven by improved crude oil prices averaging 31 per cent higher than in 2020 and higher production levels.

Year on year, overall crude production grew by five per cent to 41,200 bopd. In a volatile economic environment, this is reflects the Company’s commitment and ability to rise above the operational challenges of COVID-19.

Heritage also had another successful year of Replacing Reserves with a top quartile 109 per cent reserves replacement ratio through a strong focus on workovers, production optimisation and Improved oil recovery.

In addition to the “strong” revenue generation, “disciplined” cost management contributed to profit before tax of $2 billion. This represented a 97 per cent increase when compared to the $1.6 billion made in 2020.

Refinances USD loan

“As of the date of this publication, I am pleased to report that the Company would have successfully closed the refinancing of the Senior Secured debt of the Group via a tender offer for the TPHL 2026 Notes and the issuance of a new Heritage 2029, US$500 million bond and a new US$475 million Heritage Term Loan.

“The refinancing provided significant benefits to the TPHL Group, including lowering our weighted average cost of debt, extending our average life of debt maturities thereby freeing up near term cash for production winning Chairman’s Report for the year ended 30 September 2021 activities and curing the administrative defaults that arose as a result of the late publication of the TPHL Consolidated 2019 Financials.”

From a national perspective, the refinancing has resulted in all of the non-core assets of TPHL, including agricultural, residential and recreational lands being made fully available to be best utilised by the Government of T&T for the benefit of the citizenry.

Quamina stated that Heritage will continue to shape its sustainability agenda and its first soon to be published ESG Report tells the narrative of the company’s journey and achievements over the period 2020 to 2021.

“As part of our commitment to accelerating progress on our key sustainability programmes (protecting the environment, building community capacity, supporting economic development and empowering future leaders), we have undertaken a comprehensive review of our operations and systems. Our ESG Report reflects our commitment to continuous improvement as we strive to become a more sustainable and resilient business.”

Many plans for stakeholder engagement and exercises in community relations, were curtailed because of the pandemic and the restrictions to stop its spread. The company was able to pivot and change its proposals to suit the needs of fenceline communities.

“We delivered food hampers where there was significant need and our ‘Here We Grow’ Programmme donated over 4,000 seedlings to promote home gardening. During this very challenging period, we also supported the Collation Against Domestic Violence.”

For the upcoming year Heritage will continue to take steps to support and protect its employees and contractors.

“The strong financial results of 2021, as well as a sustained period of robust oil prices and the expected launch of our Drilling Programme in the current fiscal year, gives me the confidence that we are well placed to show continued growth in 2022 and progress our strategy. We are delivering for today while planning for the future.”

Heritage Petroleum, incorporated in T&T on 5 October 2018,is primarily engaged in exploration, development, production and marketing of crude oil. The sole shareholder is Trinidad Petroleum Holdings Limited (TPHL).

Prior to Heritage, its exploration and production were conducted by the Petroleum Company of T&T Ltd (Petrotrin). Petrotrin undertook a restructuring in 2018 and by virtue of the Miscellaneous Provisions (Heritage Petroleum, Paria Fuel Trading Co Ltd, Guaracara Refining Company Limited (Vesting) Bill, 2018 effective 1 December 2018, Petrotrin’s assets relative to exploration and production were vested in Heritage Petroleum.
Petrotrin’s assets related to terminalling and refinery operations were vested to Paria and Guaracara respectively.
The associated decommissioning and dismantlement obligations in respect of E&P, terminalling and refining operations were also transferred to the respective entities.
As a result, Heritage’s opening assets and liabilities originated as a result of the above, with the corresponding liability due to Petrotrin.

Heritage (as well as Paria and Guaracara) is a guarantor of the parent company’s, (TPHL’s), senior secured and unsecured debt obligations.
Collectively, Heritage, TPHL, Paria and Guaracara are the loan parties.
TPHL and the guarantors are currently in default of certain covenants of the credit agreement and Indenture, according to the financial statement.

S&P upgrades Trinidad Petroleum Holdings

Jun 03 2022

S&P Global Ratings upgraded its ratings on Trinidad Petroleum Holdings Ltd.
On June 1 S&P Global Ratings removed its ratings on Trinidad Petroleum Holdings Ltd from CreditWatch with developing implications and raised its Issuer credit rating on the company with a two notch upgrade to ‘BB’ from ‘B+’.
S&P Global also assigned a final ‘BB’ issuer credit and issue level rating to Heritage Petroleum Company Ltd (Heritage), the main operating subsidiary of TPHL.
The outlook for both TPHL and Heritage is “negative” to mirror that of the sovereign rating of T&T (BBB- / Negative / A-3).

Heritage contributes approximately 87 per cent of TPHL’s total Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization (EBITDA) and accounted for about 58 per cent of the country’s total oil production in Fiscal Year (FY) 2021. A release from TPHL stated,

“In May 2022, Heritage closed its US $500 million senior secured notes transaction and US $475 million new term loan which enabled it to refinance TPHL’s debt and implement a comfortable, lower cost and longer-term debt maturity schedule following the refinancing exercise.
“These new debt issuances have excluded from any lien reserves, and importantly, property not required for core business operations. In addition, after TPHL refinanced most of its liabilities through Heritage, TPHL no longer has the administrative default that forced it to classify total liabilities as short-term.”

S&P Global also withdrew its issue-level ratings on TPHL’s 9.75 per cent senior secured notes due 2026 and 6 per cent senior unsecured senior notes due 2022 after full repayment in the recent refinancing exercise.

Chairman of TPHL and Heritage Michael Quamina commented “We are very pleased with this most recent upgrade. Against the backdrop of increased oil prices on the world market and Heritage’s plans for increased production, we look forward to maximising returns for the people of T&T.”

USA consortium bids for refinery

The government is in talks over sale of idled Petrotrin refinery to Quanten

30 MAY 2022

Minister of Energy Stuart Young  told Reuters the government is in discussions with Quanten, a US-based firm, for the sale of the state-owned Petrotrin refinery

“Quanten LLC is an American company that is engaged in the (request for proposal) process for the refinery. The company is engaged with TPHL and has to go through the standard and required processes in these types of matters.”

The development comes more than a year after a OWTU proposal to buy the defunct oil refinery was rejected by the government.

State-owned Trinidad Petroleum Holdings Limited is managing the request for proposal process.:

Last year, the government revealed that Patriotic Energies, a subsidiary of the union could not come up with any credible offer of financing the refinery which had operated for over a century until Petrotrin stopped operations in November 2018 after continuous losses..

The government had estimated that the company would continue losing nearly TT$2bn ($296m) a year. In 2019, it issued a request for proposals for the sale or lease of the refinery.

The Petrotrin refinery had a capacity of 140,000 barrels a day when the controversial decision to end its oil refining operations was announced in August 2018. At that time, it was decided to completely redesign Petrotrin’s exploration and production business.

1,700 jobs were terminated at the Petrotrin refinery.

The Prime Minister told Parliament that TPHL identified a preferred bidder for the Pointe-a-Pierre Refinery  but refused to reveal the identity of the company. Sources named Quanten Consortium LLC as the preferred bidder The US company has executive offices in San Jose, California, Engineering Offices in Houston, Texas and Operations Offices in Luanda, Angola, and Soyo, Angola. It is believed to be in discussions with TPHL to gain access to the refinery but declined to provide details.

Its website states that Quanten Consortium group of companies focus on developing transformational projects in emerging markets – these are individual or series of interventions that support deep, systemic, and sustainable change with the potential for large-scale impact in an area of major development challenge.

A sister company, Quanten Consortium Aruba, LLC is engaged in refurbishment, upgrade and operations of the Aruba Refinery.

Managing partner Jeff Meyers is founder and board chairman of Quanten, LLC and Quanten Electrical Contractor, Inc. (QEC), which provides electrical services for commercial and industrial projects. QEC collaborates with Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) utility in the USA in projects involving grid connection and retrofitting buildings with energy saving solutions utilising incentive funds as designated by the State of California.

Quanten Consortium Angola, LLC will build, own and operate the Soyo Refinery which will have the capacity to process 100,000 barrels of crude per day. The company said its strategy is to build a “Deep Conversion” refinery with maximum uptime, which produces consumer ready end products such as gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, and asphalt and is protected from adverse geopolitical events.

“We have the flexibility to process a variety of crude, deliver consumer ready end products and operate an eco-friendly refinery that meets the most stringent pollution and sulphur content requirements. We have redundancies and flexibility in the supply of crude oil, equipment, long lead items, critical items, spare parts and refined products destination and customers.”

Government controversially moth-balled the iconic Pointe-a-Pierre refinery in November 2018 and sought an investor to acquire or lease it. Negotiations with the Oilfields Workers’ Trade Union subsidiary, Patriotic Energies, which had expressed an interest, collapsed in January 2021.

 

Patriotic yearns for refinery

20 June

Aware that a US-based company is the preferred bidder for the Pointe-a-Pierre refinery, Patriotic Energies and Technologies Co Ltd still hopes to acquire and resume operations at the refinery.

In a 90-minute speech on a Labour Day platform in historic oil town Fyzabad , Patriotic head and OWTU president , Ancel Roget, said the company stands ready to make the purchase.

“I wish to remind all that Patriotic won the bid, Patriotic has the money, Patriotic has experienced workers, Patriotic was and is still ready to purchase, refurbish and restart the refinery. But Government in a conniving and underhanded way, closed the process in the middle of negotiations.”

Roget suspected there was never any genuine intention by the government to give Patriotic a fair chance to acquire the refinery so that, “ordinary people” can take control of the refinery and lift their economic standing comparable to the country’s minority elites. He accused Government of being dishonest and deceitful with the handling of the refinery which he said was the people’s assets.

“Comrades, you must remember that in 2018 the trade union movement warned that the country will face many dire consequences from the shutting down of Petrotrin and closure of the refinery. Today we are vindicated as the ordinary consumer and taxpayer continues to suffer with high inflation and unemployment with no support, as a direct result of this ill-conceived economic decision.”

He said if Petrotrin and the refinery were still operational there would be no need to increase the cost of fuel which the Government did on several occasions. BBC reported that refineries are making nearly five times as much money from refining petrol as they did a year ago, which Roget urged the audience to contrast with misinformation from the Government. In a “feeble attempt” to defend his decision (to close the refinery) the Prime Minister “without shame,” told the country that high oil prices do not necessarily mean more money.

“These people are taking you the people for fools and without apology, they continue to insult the intelligence of the masses. Could you imagine what the country stood to benefit had government listened to the union and honour the April 3, 2018, memorandum of agreement to properly restructure the company? Or even better, how much the country could have gained if Government was genuine and completed the acquisition process with Patriotic? Because with a Patriotic acquisition, all ordinary people would have stood to benefit.”

OWTU is waiting “with bated breath” to see who the preferred bidder is, what sweetheart arrangement they got and what connection they have with f Government and their friends – the local elites.

 

 

 

Shell to ‘help 15,000 people get skilled jobs’

June 13, 2022, Nermina Kulovic

Ben van Beurden, CEO of UK IOC Shell, told the company’s Powering Progress UK Summit for staff and contractors of plans to increase its share of the supply of oil and gas to the UK and invest £100 million ( $122 million) by 2030 to help 15,000 people get skilled jobs as part of its investment strategy in the UK.
These plans are two out of five company ambitions for the UK until 2030 to accelerate Shell’s energy transition in the UK.

“We are going to go faster. I believe this is necessary at this time of great uncertainty and change,” van Beurden said, emphasising that it is absolutely clear that the energy transition needs to go faster and that Shell will play a leading role in its acceleration.

He outlined Shell’s five ambitions for the UK until 2030, two of which were already known, and three new ones. Shell’s first ambition is to continue to supply the oil and gas as it has been doing since the discovery of the Brent field over fifty years ago.    Today, Shell is responsible for about 10 per cent of the nation’s oil and gas supply. Now, the company aims to increase this to about 15 per cent by 2030 while producing only half the amount of our operational emissions by 2030, compared with 2018.

“Such responsibly produced, local gas plays an essential role in the UK’s energy security and transition to net-zero emissions and is in line with the North Sea Transition Deal between the UK government and the offshore oil and gas industry.”

Earlier this month, UK regulators approved Shell’s Jackdaw gas project in the North Sea, which has the potential to produce 6.5 per cent of UK gas output. However, environmental activists staged protests in front of UK government offices, calling for the project to be cancelled.

In Trinidad & Tobago for over a centruy, Shell played a major role in the development of the oil and gas industry. Shell had a refinery at Point Fortin, the location of the Atlantic LNG plant.

 

 

Converted platform deployed at Perenco fields

June 9, 2022, by Melisa Cavcic

Perenco Trinidad & Tobago (Perenco T&T), a subsidiary of Anglo-French IOC Perenco, launched a new platform to be installed in the Teak, Samaan and Poui (TSP) fields, located off the southeast coast of Trinidad and Tobago, as part of efforts to modernise the facilities on these fields.

In early 2021, Perenco T&T and local partners, Heritage Petroleum and the National Gas Company (NGC), launched a $200 million three-year investment programme in Trinidad & Tobago. This refurbishment programme aims to modernise the TSP fields by electrifying the remaining platforms and replacing the existing gas-lift infrastructure and operations with electric submersible pumps (ESPs). This means moving to a centralized, low-emission gas-fired power generation system.

As part of the first phase of Perenco’s modernisation programme, the production has been boosted by 25 per cent so far. To complete the next phase, the company will deploy the first platform to be installed in the TSP fields since the 1980s as well as the conversion of gas-lift systems to ESP, produced water reinjection and well rehabilitation.

Perenco held a ceremony at the Caribbean Dockyard (Caridoc) in Chaguaramas, to launch Macarius Power, a recently converted platform, which was previously a drilling rig. The platform, moored at Caridoc where it was converted. Two gas turbines should provide reliable electrical power to TSP platforms.

The inauguration was held in the presence of the Hon. Stuart R. Young, Minister of Energy & Energy Industries and Permanent Secretaries, TSP Partner Representatives from Heritage and NGC, His Excellency, Didier Chabert, Ambassador of France and other invited guests.

The Macarius Power platform was upgraded “using solely local skilled labour,” to enable “reliable, efficient and clean electrical power to the TSP platforms, thereby reducing the overall carbon footprint of TSP operations by 30 per cent over the next three years.”

Perenco is the operator of the consortium that manages the TSP fields, located 20 km to 45 km from the Southeast Coast of Trinidad in water depth of 55 metres. It holds 70 per cent interest in these fields – acquired in 2016 – while partners, Trinidad and Tobago Petroleum Corporation (Petrotrin) and the NGC, each holds a 15 per cent stake in the TSP fields.

Perenco has been producing around 12,000 boepd, equivalent to 13 per cent of the total liquids, from 90 production wells in Trinidad and Tobago. All the crude produced is exported to the Galeota Terminal via an underwater pipeline.

With operations in the 14 countries in Europe, Asia, Africa, Latin America and Caricom , the Group offers innovative solutions specially adapted to the exploration of oil and gas. Perenco inked a deal with New Age to buy its stake and take over the operatorship of a field offshore Cameroon.

 

 

Trinity Exploration & Production plc

(‘Trinity’ or the ‘Company’ or the ‘Group’)

Vesting of the 2018 Awards under the Long Term Incentive Plan (LTIP) and Grant of June 2022 Annual LTIP Awards

Trinity Exploration & Production plc (AIM: TRIN), the independent E&P company focused on Trinidad and Tobago, announces the vesting of awards made under the Long Term Incentive Plan (“LTIP”) on 09 May 2019 (“2018 Awards”) and awards granted under the LTIP.

2018 LTIP Awards

On 09 May 2019 the Company issued Awards under the LTIP to Management in respect of performance during the financial year ended 31 December 2018 (the “2018 Annual Award”). The Company granted options over 383,282 ordinary shares (amounts restated to reflect the Share Consolidation) which, subject to meeting the set performance criteria, vested on 02 January 2022 to those participants who remained in employment with the Company at the time of vesting.

The Awards are subject to the achievement of relative Total Shareholder Return (“Relative TSR”) performance targets measured over a three year performance period ending on 31 December 2021. The Relative TSR ranking was determined by calculating the three month average TSR to the end of the performance period and dividing this by the three month average TSR to the beginning of the performance period for all companies in the agreed comparator group. Companies were ranked on this basis with the highest performing company ranked first.

Based on the performance targets, 82.97% (318,009) of the options vested, however, 64,111 options were forfeitied and therefore the total number of Options vested on 02 January 2022 was 264,816, representing 69.09% of the total LTIPs awarded, including the vesting of 54,853 options to Jeremy Bridglalsingh, Chief Executive Officer.

The Options are exercisable at nil cost by the participants and remain available to be exercised until 1 January 2025.

LTIP Award Granted on 06 June 2022

The Company announces that 290,000 options have been granted under the LTIP in respect of the Company’s performance in the year to 31 December 2021 (the “June 2022 LTIP Award”), including 90,000 options granted to Jeremy Bridglalsingh, Chief Executive Officer. The June 2022 Annual LTIP Award represents 0.75% of the Company’s current issued share capital.

The performance targets set for awards made under the June 2022 Annual LTIP Award will be measured considering both the Company’s absolute TSR performance and the Company’s relative TSR performance over a three year period, commencing with the current financial year of the Company (i.e. a measurement period of 1 January 2022 to 31 December 2024). TSR calculations will be determined by reference to the volume weighted three month average price prior to the start and end of the measurement period (with the starting average price adjusted for the Share Consolidation). The three month volume weighted average price at the start of the performance period for the June 2022 Annual LTIP Award was £1.38 (adjusted for the Share Consolidation).

The performance targets provide that:

• No portion of a distinct one-half of the June 2022 Annual LTIP Award (the “Absolute TSR Part”) may vest unless the Company’s compound annual growth rate of TSR over the performance period is at least 10% p.a., for which 30% of the Absolute TSR Part may vest, rising on a straight line basis for full vesting of the Absolute TSR Part if the Company’s compound annual growth rate of TSR over the performance period equals or exceeds 20% p.a.
• No portion of the other distinct one-half of the June 2022 Annual LTIP Award (the “Relative TSR Part”) may vest unless the Company’s TSR over the performance period ranks at least median relative to the TSR performance within a comparator group of companies, for which 30% of the Relative TSR Part may vest, rising on a straight line basis for full vesting of the Relative TSR Part if the Company’s TSR over the performance period ranks upper quartile or better relative to the TSR performance within a comparator group.

Relative TSR Comparator Group

FTSE AIM All Share Oil & Gas constituents

Size:-  Market capitalisation of between GBP 20 million and GBP 400 million

Further relevance filter:-  Exploration & Production operations, excluding oil equipment and service, pure-play exploration and alternative energy companies.

These filters create a comparator group of 30 companies which excludes larger companies that may be expected to be on the main list and micro explorers that can show extreme volatility and which can be numerous at various points in the business cycle. For 2022, the market cap range of GBP 20-400 million has been deemed appropriate, but the Remuneration Committee will review the appropriate range for each new LTIP grant.

However, an underpin term applies to the Relative TSR Part which provides that, regardless of relative TSR performance, no vesting may ordinarily accrue in respect of the Relative TSR Part unless the Company’s compound annual growth rate of TSR over the performance period is at least 10% per annum.

The earliest vesting date for the June 2022 Annual LTIP Award will be 1 January 2025.

The Remuneration Committee believes that the Company’s LTIP continues to be an important tool for aligning the interests of the Trinity Executive Management Team with those of shareholders. The Remuneration Committee will determine the Absolute TSR targets, and the underpin, for future awards taking into account the share price at the start of each measurement period, and may also alter the composition of the comparator group for future awards if it deems it appropriate to do so.

The information set out below is provided in accordance with the requirements of Article 19(3) of the UK Market Abuse Regulations.

1	Details of the person discharging managerial responsibilities/person closely associated
a)	Name	Jeremy Bridglalsingh
2	Reason for the notification
a)	Position/status	Chief Executive Officer
b)	Initial notification/Amendment	Initial notification
3	Details of the issuer, emission allowance market participant, auction platform, auctioneer or auction monitor
a)	Name	Trinity Exploration & Production plc
b)	LEI	213800WHW7571LAEDG63
4	Details of the transaction(s): section to be repeated for (i) each type of instrument; (ii) each type of transaction; (iii) each date; and (iv) each place where transactions have been conducted
a)	Description of the financial instrument, type of instrument   Identification code	Ordinary shares of USD 0.01 per share par value GB00BN7CJ686
b)	Nature of the transaction	Grant of Options under the Trinity Exploration & Production plc Long-Term Incentive Plan
c)	Price(s) and volume(s)	Price(s) Volume(s) Nil 90,000
d)	Aggregated information – Aggregated volume – Price	90,000 ordinary shares of USD 0.01 per share par value Nil consideration
e)	Date of the transaction	06 June 2022
f)	Place of the transaction	Outside a trading venue

 Signed   Joe Walker, Associate

 

 

 

Trinity Exploration results

24 May 2022

Continued strong performance with structure in place for dynamic growth strategy

Trinity, the independent E&P company focused on Trinidad and Tobago, has announced its final results for the year ended 31 December 2021.

Trinity delivered another resilient performance in 2021. The Group is now positioned to leverage its cash and asset base to drive value and returns – with groundwork laid for near-term resumption of drilling, comprising a combination of high angle and horizontal as well as conventional low angle wells. This will be funded from existing cash resources and is the first phase of an ambitious growth strategy designed to maximise returns.

Highlights

1. 1. 1. Revenues of USD 66.2 million (2020: USD 44.1 million)
      2. Average production of 3,069 bopd (2020: 3,232 bopd)
      3. Average price per barrel received increased to USD 60.4/bbl (2020: USD 37.7/bbl)
      4. Adjusted EBITDA of USD 19.8 million (2020: USD 12.1 million)
      5. Operating Profit* of USD 10.0 million (2020: USD 3.0 million)
      6. Sixth consecutive year of sub USD30.0/bbl operating break-even with industry wide cost pressures increasing
      7. Cash generated from continuing operations USD 12.6 million (2020: USD 10.3million)
      8. Cash flow used in investing activities USD 13.9 million (2020: USD 6.0 million)
      9. Year end cash USD 18.3 million (2020: USD 20.2 million)
      10. New 25-year Galeota Licence, Crude Sales Agreement, Joint Operating Agreement, Conversion to 100% Working Interest
      11. Lease Operatorship Agreements renewed for 10 years on attractive terms
      12. PS-4 acquisition completed – further enhancing Trinity’s contiguous acreage
          * Before SPT, PT, Impairments and Exceptional Items

Positioned for Next Growth Phase

• • Dynamic strategy for growth is underpinned by a strong balance sheet and resilient and dependable cash flow
  • Focus on maximising value from existing assets and through acquisitions and partnerships
  • Clearly defined, risk-mitigated strategy to drive returns for shareholders through value growth and the potential to return cash
  • Strengthened Board
    Additions of Derek Hudson and Kaat Van Hecke further strengthening commercial, operational and wider industry skill sets
  • Creation of Technical Committee
  • Focused on risk-mitigation and assurance of opportunities which can increase scale and optimise returns
  • Resumption of onshore drilling during H2 2022 is the first phase of this scaling up process
  • Commenced planning for ambitious, risk-appropriate exploration programme
  • To test the remaining material prospective onshore resources, using 3D seismic to map leads with potential to be fast-tracked to monetisation
  • Exploring various options for the Galeota asset

Post Period Highlights

1. 1. 1. Continued momentum into Q1 2022
      2. Q1 production levels resilient with volumes averaging 3,013 bopd (Q4 2021: 3,103 bopd). 2022 average production will be influenced by the timing and outcomes of the drilling campaign.
      3. Cash balance of USD 17.5 million as at 31 March 2022 (unaudited) (USD 18.3 million as at 31 December 2021)
      4. Average realisation of USD 83.1/bbl for Q1 (Q1 2021: USD 52.3/bbl)
         2022 average production will be influenced by the timing and outcomes of the drilling campaign

Jeremy Bridglalsingh, CEO of Trinity, commented:

‘We are delighted with the Company’s performance during 2021 and look forward with confidence. The reinforced technical guidance for the upcoming drilling programme points towards the potential for this to be an inflection point for the Company as we commence the next stage of our growth, and we very much look forward to updating the market with further developments in due course.

‘Our ambition is to double production over the next few years, and thereby generate sufficient free cash flow both to fund future growth initiatives and deliver meaningful cash returns for shareholders, and we believe that we now have the structure in place to deliver this challenging target.’

Source: Trinity Exploration

 

Woodside Energy Group

Shiva McMahon, Head of international operations at Woodside TT, said:

“…..the merger between BHP Petroleum and Woodside Energy Group Ltd brings opportunities for both companies to maximise benefits together….”

McMahon was previously general manager of Australia production unit at BHP Petroleum.
Energy Minister Stuart Young met a team from Woodside TT for the first time after the merger on June 1. Young said Woodside’s presence in TT was welcomed and expressed his willingness to continue relationships with the company. Areas of discussion included future collaborations in oil, gas and new energy. Acting permanent secretary at the energy ministry Sandra Fraser, Woodside TT country manager and Woodside TT corporate affairs manager Dr Carla Noel-Mendez Manager attended.

The US $28 billion merger by the Australian energy giants — Woodside Petroleum and the BHP Group —began in August 2021 and was finalised June 1.

 

 

Energy Conference 2022

Trinidad and Tobago Energy Conference 2022 highlighted a range of businesses in its trade show. Mechanical and technical support companies, housing and transport solutions and innovations in renewables displayed their services and networked with one another.

About 60 companiesl connected to the energy sector took booths at the the first physical energy conference since the beginning of the pandemic in 2020. With roots in the 1980s, the event has been the most successful and best attended energy sector conference in the region. In 2020 there were 750 delegates and over 2,000 visitors to the trade show.

Businesses all took part to expand and develop after having had to pivot during the economic downturn and to break new ground as Trinidad and Tobago and the rest of the world transition to cleaner energy.

“This is an excellent opportunity for innovative teams to showcase the work that they have done before an audience of industry leaders,” said Dwight Mahabir, Energy Chamber chairman who spoke about the new opportunities for the energy sector .

Touring the trade show , Minister of Energy Stuart Young said there was potential in each company and the conference was timely given the number of initiatives the country is undertaking.

“I am glad to see that we are finally able to see each other after a couple years. We are really hopeful for a successful energy conference and bringing together the right people to have the right types of conversations. Hopefully those conversations will influence policy in some companies and investment options.”

Morrow Energy

Since 1987 Morrow Energy has manufactured, installed, operated and maintained hundreds of gas and processing plants, treating more than 200 million cubic feet per day (MCI/d) for customers.

For the past 20 years the company has been using its expertise in gas treatment to tackle pollution from landfills.

Areyan Stocks-Gonzales, finance and business development manager, said the Texas-based company is now hoping to provide the same services to TT landfills.

“We want to meet the people that may help us get to the next step. Every landfill is different so we want to get out there to see what kind of waste is going into the landfills, how much new trash is going into the landfill. Once you know that you can design the facility around it.”

Anaerobic bacteria in landfills slowly dissolves trash and turns it into several gases, most of which is methane. These gases pollute the air and make areas fetid. The company’s state-of-the-art extraction technology will remove the noxious gases that would have been released into the atmosphere and separate and treat the methane, resulting in pipeline-worthy content that could be used in the energy sector.

“There is a three-fold benefit: one, you take this waste product, and you turn it into energy, and three, you lessen the environmental burden on that local area,” Stocks-Gonzales said.

Aside from the conference the company had meetings with stakeholders virtually and hoped to meet people face-to-face.

“Wherever there is a landfill, there is an opportunity,” he said.

 

 

Miguel Mechanical Services Ltd

Miguel Mechanical Services has been in operation for 40 years providing service in heavy lifting and inspection and certification of machines and tools in the energy sector and beyond. Now through the conference, it intends to reconnect with stakeholders in the industry.

The company has two branches – Miguel Mechanical Services which is a lifting service that provides cranes, crane operators and mechanical technicians for loading and heavy lifting operations.

Ace Inspectors is the inspection branch for onshore and offshore inspections.

“We do offshore drilling rigs, land rigs, non-destructive testing (NDT) inspection on vessels and lifting equipment,” said communications officer Akeitha Duncan.

“We want to re-introduce Miguel Mechanical to everyone. We are trying to revamp and grow our company, and to get the word out there that our people are certified and they know what they are doing and are more than capable of handling anything in the industry.”

Technicians at Miguel Mechanical Services follow the British Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations (Loler) and the Lift and Escalator Industry Association (Leia) standards.

Miguel Mechanical Services is also the regional provider for Reflex Marine’s “The Frog”, an emergency transfer vessel. The Frog is self-righting, buoyant, and is capable of holding six people and a stretcher in the event of an emergency in the water.

 

Score Valves/Score Group

Score Valves, part of the Score Group has been supplying, maintaining and repairing valves for TT’s oil and gas industry since 2001 and has relationships with BHP, BPTT and Shell TT. Score Valves also offers pressure safety valve certification for Atlantic LNG and non-contract work with companies such as Massy Holdings.

“We have VR certification for our repairs and we are ISO 9000 certified,” said Sarah Ramjattan, deputy contract manager.

“We have access to a global stock and we enjoy benefits of customers who maintain stock with us because we have warehousing facilities so they can share stock in the event of an emergency then replace it.”

During the pandemic when there were restrictions on energy companies on the number of people allowed on a site, the company slowed down in terms of calls for repairs and maintenance but there was always a need for a new valve.

“There is always an emergency or an urgent need for valves so that part did not slow down.”

 

 

Southern Sales

Provider of leased and rental vehicles for 50 years, Southern Sales, has been a long-standing fixture of the TT Energy Conference. Of its fleet of 1,100 vehicles, about half are used by the energy sector.

“Every year we take part in the conference because a large part of our clientèle is in the energy sector. We also do it for greater networking, because everyone needs transport,” said representative Brian Mohammed.

The company specialises in ground transportation, not just short-term rentals. Southern Sales offers executive transport, shuttle services, airport transit and customised transport solutions. While joining the conference and trade show is nothing new to the company, it took the opportunity to expand and engage new customers.

“The pandemic hasn’t put a spoke in our wheels. What we did is we sat down and regrouped and shifted our focus a bit based on the economy at the time. Now that things are picking back up in the energy sector we expect that things are only going to get better.”

 

 

The Residences at South Park

Accessing a living space close to where one works is key to productivity, and the people at the Residences at South Park, are now providing that solution with its apartment complex  The Residences.

Ava Tang Choon said, “In the year 2000, Amera Caribbean had a vision in terms of development. We purchased the land in South Park and developed it into a community. We are now developing the southern end of the park. We will also be building hotels, supermarkets and retail shops in the area.”

26 apartments are available out of 72, which range between $3 million and $3.4 million.

“We can contribute because a lot of the infrastructure for the energy sector is in southern Trinidad. There are also a lot of other service companies in that neighbourhood. We can contribute by giving access to a living space close to where they work.”

 

 

Energy Chamber: Fast-track bid rounds, streamline approval process

Minister of Energy and Energy Industries Stuart Young, joined the permanent secretary, Penelope Bradshaw-Niles, acting senior petroleum engineer Christian Welsh and acting senior geologist Kimberly London at the TT Energy Conference,Port of Spain

Contributors at the Trinidad and Tobago Energy Chamber’s three-day Energy Conference, which kicked off at the Hyatt Regency urged the Government to streamline approval processes, to shorten the time between bid rounds and achieving first gas.

Contributors made the call during a panel discussion including NGC president Mark Loquan;        Eugene Okpere, senior vice president and country chairman of Shell TT; DeNovo Energy managing director Brian Ramsumair; BPTT president Claire Fitzpatrick; and Darryl White, CEO of RBC Financial Caribbean.

Okpere said the sooner gas molecules could be put into the pipeline for refining and sale, the better in terms of value. He noted a situation in Namibia where a team at Shell reduced the time to achieve first gas from 12-18 months to 28 days.

“The sooner we could get bid rounds out we can incentivise explorers to take the steps to find the resources. Any molecules that is possible, including marginal ones, overall, in that stage we can play our role better. The normal cycle times need to be challenged. I am confident that when we put our minds to it then we can.”

Fitzpatrick said that BPTT is recognising that gas molecules have value and need to get into the system as fast as possible. Therefore shortening the time between approvals, exploration, extraction and refining – whether from a regulatory or a company perspective – should be good for all parties involved.

“You need a strong regulatory environment,” Fitzpatrick said after the discussion.

“So don’t think that we don’t believe there should be all of that.

“But there are ways that could streamline the process so we could shorten it. And if you can shorten it that would mean more economic value which means molecules get into the system faster.”

Trying to streamline approval processes and improve the ease of doing business in the energy industry is not unique to TT.

“The ease of doing business is something that is affecting every country in the world. It is up to this country to balance a strong regulatory framework and make it as efficient as possible.”

Ramsumair added that data on available blocks and all its details should also be made available to the public to help accelerate development by having people access data to make their own bids.

“This isn’t groundbreaking. It’s done all over the world.”

He also called for policies on infrastructure-sharing when there are hydrocarbons that are discovered near existing infrastructure.

“Policies should exist either through an industry initiative or through government, so we can understand that when we have these hydrocarbons, we have the ability to bring them to market because we understand how the molecules are going to get there.”

Minister of Energy Stuart Young admitted bureaucracy is one of the points of frustration.

“Anyone would be burying their heads in the sand if we didn’t acknowledge that sometimes the bureaucracy takes too long to get things done. We are at the critical and volatile stage that the world energy industry is at now, we need to speed up our processes while making sure that we dot our i’s and cross our t’, and for me to protect the people of TT.”

JD Sellier, in a catalogue of gas regulations worldwide, said the Ministry of Energy, in accordance with the Minerals Act, is responsible for the overall management of oil, gas and minerals in TT and also for regulating each sector. Section 48 of the petroleum regulations indicates that exploration operations on a scale that has been agreed to between the minister and the licensee must start no later than a year from the effective date. Regulation 50 says if a licensee should find oil in commercial quantities it must be produced without delay. However unless notice is given to the minister and approval is obtained, a licensee may not begin any activity.

 

 

Women in energy

May 31 2022

Of seven people on the stage when the Energy Conference held its “Next Generation Leaders” panel discussion, only one was a man. This was not planned. It was the response from some of the key Chief Executive Officers in the energy industry when asked to send their organisation’s next leader.

“Just to be clear when we were putting together this panel calls were made to the CEOs of these companies and said give us your next leader. There was no discussion on give us your next male leader or give us your next female leader, it was give us your next leader,” the facilitator for the panel discussion Pria Narinesingh the country managing partner of the EY Barbados, Eastern Caribbean and T&T stated.

The panel comprises the National Gas Company’s (NGC) senior planning engineer Candace Subero-Bailey, Shell T&T’s country controller Simone David, BP’s subsurface area development manager Katy Henderson-Moses, Atlantic’s manager strategy and optimisation Vashtie Ramsaran-Baball, Proman’s director marketing and logistics (Trinidad) Hanna Sukhu Maharaj and Touchstone Exploration (Trinidad) Ltd’s exploration manager Xavier Moonan.

“Do you think this is representative of where the industry is going? This is a change. Panels we would have had before would have been opposite to this,” Narinesingh said.

Maharaj said she believes it is.

“Proman is the perfect example in this instance because Proman started primarily as an engineering and construction company, a project management company ideally, and of course it was traditionally a male oriented organisation and so fast forward 30 years later we are the largest tenant on the Point Lisas Industrial Estate we are also the largest employer in the downstream petrochemical sector and more that 27 per cent of our global workforce is currently women and more than 23 per cent of our very senior leadership positions are also women. So I think that says a lot about where the organisation and where the energy sector is generally going . “It is not to say our men have done a bad job,” Maharaj said as she lauded the male mentors who helped her career.

“I myself have been mentored by some of the most brilliant minds in the industry most which were men and that’s fine but if we are to get to where we want to be in 2050 we have to have a greater acceptance for the inclusion and diversity concept,” Maharaj said.

Henderson-Moses said diversity is not only important it is crucial.

“There are enough scientific studies that can show the correlation between companies that have a diverse set of leaders and performance, it is always a good thing to have more voices in the room more representation for more areas to help pitch new ideas and get different viewpoints.”

However she warned that is should not just be about ticking a box

“Does any one of us want to be the token female?” she asked.

Henderson-Moses said the BP executive team has more women than men on it and it is the first energy company to do that.

“It acts as a role model to me to see those women in those positions so I can see that representation so I think that it is absolutely important.”

Moonan said while there are not may women on drilling rigs locally, this is not necessarily the case internationally.

“We see women work on all of the different aspects of jobs at the rigs itself it does not happen in Trinidad I have seen it in other countries around especially in Colombia and Peru but it is not the norm here per se.”

[ Historical note. Dynamic women scientists from North Trinidad were at the sharp end of the liberal petroleum industry over 50 years ago. . Sita Seeterram was a chemist in the refinery at Texaco Trinidad and her lookalike neighbour from Tunapuna, was a palaeontologist in the Geological Laboratory at Pointe-a-Pierre. These modest pioneers quietly paved the way for generations of petroleum technologists, working happily beside male colleagues across the value chain to deliver energy to the region.]

 

 

Chamber Chairman on high energy prices

May 31 2022

Chairman of the Energy Chamber Dwight Mahabir.advised delegates at the Energy Conference that, as an oil and gas-based economy T&T must not let the current geopolitically- driven, high- price environment lull it into any false sense of security. While the push in Europe to find alternatives to Russian gas and oil has renewed attention on fossil fuels, the longer-term climate imperative remains firmly in place and is driving long-term strategy.
Six months ago the imminent end of the fossil fuel era was a frequent topic of conversation. While there “now seems to be a more balanced view” Mahabir reiterated that this country must remain focused.

“With so much uncertainty it is sometimes difficult to chart a course forward or to take decisions about the direction of travel. But that is exactly what we must do.”

Noting that this year’s theme is “Leveraging the industry’s strengths for the energy transition” Mahabir said there are huge strengths in the Trinidad energy industry.

“We are sometimes guilty of not recognising and communicating all that we have achieved. It is not about patting ourselves on the back and being complacent – far from it – but it is about taking stock of our abilities and knowing that for a small island nation we are capable of big things.”

At this year’s conference the country’s history was also recognized even as it looks forward.

“As we do so we need to recognise that the immediate imperative for Trinidad & Tobago is to secure additional natural gas supply.”

This will allow T&T to preserve its world-class LNG and petrochemical sectors while creating space to diversify the economy and navigate the energy transition, vital for all member companies of the Energy Chamber, from the smallest contractors to the major multinationals.

Mahabir cited the Chamber’s recently released six-point plan and reiterated the need to fast-track bid rounds and the approval processes.

“The only way exploration and development is going to take place is if acreage is in the hands of competent and motivated companies. The deepwater bid round is closing .. and .. we are all eagerly anticipating the outcome.

“ BHP and their partners have had exploration success in the northern area of the deepwater acreage, with 3,5 trillion cubic feet of natural gas resources announced.”

The Chamber is confident that this will be turned into successful development in due course, noting that the recent success of onshore exploration shows the continued potential even in a very mature basin. The upcoming onshore bid round is also expected to attract a lot of interest.

It is not just about putting more acreage out there: It also means speeding up the regulatory approval processes to reduce the time between the award of new acreage and first gas production. This will significantly improve project economics and make new gas available faster. A study commissioned by the Energy Chamber in 2020 showed that a one-year reduction in the time taken to first gas could create US$ 120 million in additional net present value for a typical T&T medium-sized offshore gas field.

Safety also remained paramount for the industry as Mahabir recollected the tragedy which took the lives of Fyzal Kurban, Rishi Nagassar, Yusuf Henry and Kazim Ali Jr in February this year during an incident at Berth 6 in Pointe-a-Pierre, with a fifth person, Christopher Boodram, being badly injured.

“As an industry our commitment must be to ensure that a proper investigation is completed and that we learn the lessons to ensure that this never happens again.”

 

 

Natural gas will continue to drive economy

In the feature address at the opening of the three-day Energy Conference of the Energy Chamber, the Prime Minister said the Government wished to reduce its subsidy of gasoline but amid a shift to electricity being used to power public transport.

Commitment to a 30 per cent drop in public transport carbon emissions by 2030 was an opportunity to reduce or eliminate the fuel subsidy, amounting to $23 billion in the past ten years and now at $142 million per month. He recalled recent cuts in subsidies – premium gasoline (52 per cent), super gasoline (38 per cent), kerosene (31 per cent) and diesel 11 per cent).

“We are in a volatile energy scenario with the potential for fuel prices to move in either direction. In the current circumstances, we may have little choice but to implement a fuel liberalisation programme to allow domestic fuel prices to move freely with market prices. In any such arrangement, we will implement measures to cushion the impact on the travelling public.“

Transportation policy must become more climate-friendly than hydrocarbons, declaring, “The future of mobility will be electric.” Foreign oil and gas companies now in TT can help build the electric vehicle ecosystem.

He championed a mix of fossil fuels, renewable energy and green hydrogen. The latter is produced when renewables such as solar energy are used to break down water to release hydrogen, as a combustible or a feedstock, which TT is well situated to produce.

Estimating a $2 billion cost for TT to transition, he warned the shift to green energy was “not as simple as flipping a switch.”

 

 

Fossil fuel shortages followed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

“The energy crisis has highlighted the current limitations of green energy and the realisation that fossil fuels will continue to play a major part in the energy supply chain, for some considerable time, as the world innovates and transition to low carbon energy sources. The lesson learnt from this realisation is that we need to build our energy future on a foundation of realism. In short, we need to strengthen our current energy systems as we transform into one that relies increasingly on renewable energy sources.”

Government has a pragmatic approach to energy transition, optimising hydrocarbons while acting to reduce carbon footprint.

“However, for the foreseeable future, hydrocarbons and in particular natural gas, the clean energy, will continue to drive the economy.

“The current outlook due to geopolitical events and energy security issues, suggest that natural gas is increasingly being considered not only as a low carbon alternative but as the fuel of choice. This is evidenced by the growth in natural gas.” The Gas Exporting Countries Forum predicted a 46 per cent jump in natural gas demand from 2020-2050.

A Government team is negotiating with shareholders to restructure Atlantic LNG , extend its life and benefit from genuine export prices.

Gas supply will be tight until the Manatee and Calypso mega projects in 2028, the subsector relying on cross-border access and an aggressive bid-round programme.

“The outlook for oil production is promising,”

Rowley hailed recent finds by Touchstone and BHP Billiton, while urging Heritage to accelerate its leasing, farmouts and joint ventures of its significant idle acreage.

The latest oil audit, established 3P (proven, probable, and possible) reserves at 455 million barrels and prospective resources of 3.2 billion barrels, with 90 per cent being deep-water. A 2020 gas reserve audit identified 23 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of recoverable gas and 55 tcf of prospective gas resources.

Amid global bid-rounds, TT’s resilience and competitiveness will rely on lower production costs, more efficient production, better fiscal regimes and more expeditious regulatory oversight. The Ministries of Finance and Energy are fully reviewing the oil and gas taxation regime, such as capital allowances and petroleum profits tax.

“Given the uncertainty of energy transition it is difficult to define the end game, that is, which technology will emerge and what will be the final energy mix. Therefore it is in our interest to expeditiously take steps to monetize the country’s abundant oil and gas resources.”

 

Paria

In his opening address at the Energy Chamber’s three-day conference, Dwight Mahabir, Energy Chamber chairman called for the energy industry to make a renewed commitment to keeping safety a main priority, in light of the deaths of four men – Fyzal Kurban, Kazim Ali Jr, Rishi Nagassar and Yusuf Henry – in the Paria drowning incident in February.

“If it is not safe to do, then don’t do it. As an industry our commitment must be to ensure that a proper investigation is completed and that we learned the lessons necessary to ensure that this never happens again.”

After his address Mahabir said that the energy industry has been able to maintain a world-class standard in occupational health and safety but there was still room for improvement.

“When you look at the activities that take place in the industry – extremely heavy lifts, confined space entry, the type of gasses and toxins and hostile environments that we work in…we do it safely.”

There is an additional complexity in maintaining occupational health and safety when dealing with transient workers who go into different industries that have to deal with different cultures.

“You have transit workers who, when you have major construction in the energy sector, …moving between construction and maintenance projects. You would have guys that would go and work a taxi in between. You would have people going into the general construction industry and the civil trades and it is a different type of culture that you have to work with (when dealing with health and safety).”

The accident on Paria in February showed there were major gaps in the processes that led to the deaths of four men and severe injury to a fifth, and hoped the investigation would find those gaps.

On February 25 Paria Fuel Trading outlined the incident involving private contractors LMCS Ltd during underwater maintenance in Pointe-a-Pierre.

On February 26 Energy Minister Stuart Young visited the company and was given an update on the search efforts but on the night of February 27 Paria chairman Newman George said the divers were presumed dead.

On February 28 three of the four men’s bodies were found. The fourth body was found on March 3. A commission of enquiry is to investigate the incident.

 

 

4 bids for deepwater energy exploration

Only four out of the 17 deepwater exploration blocks up for grabs received bids at the end of the relevant bid round but Minister of Energy Stuart Young said the results were a great positive for Trinidad and Tobago.

Responding to questions at the end of the three-day TT Energy Conference 2022 at the Hyatt Regency hotel, Young said the fact that there were no further bids was also expected. He reiterated advice in December at the beginning of the bid round, that shareholders have stopped oil companies from entering new areas.

“As I said on the outset when we were going with these bid rounds, I never expected there to be a lot of external interest because of the way the global energy sector is set up. A lot of these energy companies have been forced by their shareholders to take decisions that you cannot invest in new provinces. It has to be seen in that context. So the four blocks taken up by a consortium of BP and Shell is a great positive for TT.”

During the presentation of the Ryder Scott Report delivered in December, Young announced the deepwater bid round, which was expected to be open for six months, ending on the last day of the energy conference.

Young said proposals would be evaluated based on the provisions outlined in the order and a point system detailed in schedule six of the Deepwater Competitvie Bid Round order of 2021. Earning points on the bid depended on its proposed minimum exploration work programme, geophysical and geological work programme and proposed drilling plans. Each block has its own point system.

The successful bidders will be announced three months after the close of the bids. The successful bidder will enter a production-sharing contract with the government which will be held for a term of nine years.

The contract will include a requirement to present to the minister a work programme for each year for approval and a requirement to make payments on annual charges, production bonuses, technical assistance and equipment bonuses.

Young described the deepwater provinces as “virgin territory” and said it would be costly and risky to explore and put down infrastructure on the blocks.

“It is a highly unrisked area. The next bid round will be the onshore bid rounds and there is going to be a lot more interest there because it is a lot cheaper to explore and produce.”

A consortium of BP, EOG and BG, a subsidiary of Shell, bid on the four blocks – 23(b) 25(a) 25(b) 27.

Block 23(b) is about 20 km off the eastern coast of Tobago. The area is 2,584 sq km. Blocks (b) 25(a) 25(b) and 27 are about 100 km away from the east coast of Trinidad. Block 25(a) is 1,388 sq km, block 25(b) is 1,389 sq km and block 27 is 1,181 sq km.

Young said the consortium was a positive, with the two companies being major shareholders of Atlantic LNG. Because of the expense, it would be better for the country if they bid together to share the cost.

BPTT president Claire Fitzpatrick said the consortium made perfect sense and meant both companies would be able to bring skills to the table that would progress deepwater activities.

“When you look at some of these deepwater projects, they come with risk and are quite expensive. Therefore it is perfectly normal that you actually end up doing things in a consortium.”

While she did not have any preconceived notions about possible competitors, she said she focused on the potential in the deepwater blocks.

“Like any exploration, it is where you think there would be the most prospectivity,” Fitzpatrick said while answering questions on BPTT’s selection of blocks.

“Those blocks were the most attractive to us and we also saw some synergies with some other activities we already had in the region.

“What I was interested in was what we thought of the blocks. Strategically, it made sense for us to partner with Shell. The fact that we did bid means that we do see potential in TT’s deepwater, and for me that is what I am focusing on. I am eagerly anticipating the ministry’s evaluation and I am hoping that we could move to activity.

“We are delighted to bid together,” added Stephane Picarle, Shell TT general manager. “We believe that we bring joint forces into this challenging activity, so that is what a consortium enables.”

 

 

Response to deep water bid round

Jun 03 2022

Cool response to the 2022 T&T deep-water bid round was expected, with only four of the 17 blocks receiving single bids by a consortium of bpTT and Shell. For some, it was a disappointing end to the six month process and the first deep-water bid round in almost a decade. The Ministry of Energy had offered 17 blocks in the deep-water bid round and three quarters of the blocks failed to win a single bid.

BHP, now Woodside Petroleum, showed no interest in the deep-water blocks, having acquired extensive seismic in T&T’s deep-water and made natural gas discoveries.This latest blow comes afture government failed to deliver a deep-water bid round, almost eight years since it came to power. The last bid round in which bpTT and Shell were joint venture partners and sole bidders have not seen an award made because the bids were considered unworkable by the Ministry of Energy.
The deep-water blocks attracting bids were on Blocks 25(a) 25(b) 23 and 27.

 

 

 

Liberalised fuels market

Jun 01 2022

The Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley delivered the feature address at the opening ceremony of the T&T Energy Conference..

Citizens may have to pay the international price for fuel as he warned that the country spent tens of billions in keeping prices low and is in a volatile energy scenario with the potential for fuel prices to move in either direction. In the current circumstances, it may have little choice but to implement a fuel liberalisation programme to allow domestic fuel prices to move freely with market prices. In any such arrangement, measures will be implemented to cushion the impact on the travelling public.

“It is, therefore, important that our transportation policy moves away from the current model based solely on liquid fossil fuels,” Rowley said, noting that the future of mobility will be electric, with electric vehicles becoming the preferred climate-friendly transportation option.
Given the uncertainty of energy transition, the Prime Minister also noted that it is difficult to define the end game, that is, which technology will emerge and what will be the final energy mix.
“Therefore, it is in our interest to expeditiously take steps to monetise the country’s abundant oil and gas resources.”

The latest gas reserve audit established that at year end 2020 technically recoverable resources amounted to 23.2 trillion cubic feet (tcf) and prospective resources at 55.2 tcf. Whereas the latest oil audit, established 3P reserves at 455.3 million barrels and prospective resources amounted to 3.2 billion barrels with 90 per cent being in T&T’s deep-water province.

Accordingly, this country has embarked on a series of bid rounds which commenced with the deep-water bid-round in December of last year. On offer is a large selection of deep water acreage comprising 17 blocks.
Noting that T&T is not singular in the matter as several countries are actively promoting bid-rounds at this time, the PM said there is also competition for exploration capital.

“Seven licensing rounds were closed by the first quarter 2022 and another eight licensing rounds, that are open, are expected to close by the end of 2022. Regionally, Suriname, Colombia and Brazil closed successful bid-rounds. Upcoming 2022 bid-rounds comprise Guyana’s deep-water blocks, Brazil sub-salt blocks and Ecuador oil blocks.”

In September 2021 the Ministry of Energy invited nominations for Onshore Acreage for Competitive Bidding and 11 blocks were nominated. Based on the responses, the ministry plans to launch the onshore competitive bid round within this quarter.

“The offshore shallow water bid-round will be next. In total there are 25 open shallow water blocks for consideration. A date for the launch has not yet been determined.”

Proliferation of bid-rounds will increase the competition for capital in an energy market that is undergoing transition.

“While we are acknowledged as a proven hydrocarbon province with substantial unrealised potential, we need to maintain our competitiveness and resilience.”

This involves the lowering production costs, improving oil and gas production efficiency, an attractive fiscal regime and a more expeditious execution of the regulatory oversight.

Moving towards new resources
As T&T moves to identify new resources, available resources have to be managed.  Management of the hydrocarbon resources has not been without challenges. A combination of COVID-19, low commodity prices and technical issues have setback levels of both oil and gas production. However, with the ease in the pandemic and new activity, both oil and gas production are set to rise.

With new production coming onstream in 2022 and 2023, gas production is projected to increase from present levels to 3.2 trillion cubic feet by 2024.
Gas supply between 2024 and 2027 will be tight before improving in 2028 with the coming onstream of mega projects, the Manatee and Calypso.

However, the key to a sustained gas industry will be the exploration and development of the country’s hydrocarbon resources as well as access to cross-border natural gas resources.
Given the leading role that hydrogen is poised to play in the energy transition, there is opportunity by industry players to embrace hydrogen in the creation of a sustainable petrochemical industry.

State-owned National Gas Company and its wholly-owned subsidiary National Energy in collaboration with Kenesjay Green Ltd (Kenesjay) are actively collaborating on the creation of a sustainable hydrogen economy for the energy sector.

NGC has been instrumental in the formation of a new green agenda sub-committee of the Point Lisas Energy Association (PLEA) which will lead PLEA sustainability and green agenda actions, and coordinate synergies among member companies.

“It is this spirit of co-operation together with innovation that will enable the Point Lisas Industrial Estate to maintain its relevance and status as a world class industrial centre. An embodiment of these characteristics is the initiative being pursued by Kenesjay Green Ltd and Hydrogen de France to establish the country’s first industrial project to produce carbon-free hydrogen. Kenesjay and Hydrogen de France are to be applauded for their ingenuity and it is hoped that other companies will follow suit.”

A comprehensive, inclusive and cost-effective strategy to address climate change requires bringing in complementary policy areas and exploiting synergies among them. A case in point, he cited, is electric vehicles.

However, there’s no quick fix. Noting that the energy landscape is rapidly evolving and therefore strategies should be geared to respond in a timely fashion to changes in the market, Rowley said how the industry fares in the transition depends to a large extent on collective efforts. Divestment is one source of government revenue.
This year marked the first-in person energy conference since 2020 under the theme, “Leveraging the industry’s strengths for the energy transition.”

 

 

Subsea 7 to install bp pipeline

May 11, 2022

Subsea 7 will perform installations for bp’s TOPR project offshore Trinidad and Tobago in water depths of up to 280 ft.

The engineering, procurement, construction and installation work scope includes laying a 96-km, 12-inch pipeline, and installation of associated shore approach and diver tie-in spools.

FEED is underway. Project management and engineering will take place in Subsea 7’s office in Houston.

05.11.2022

 

 

Lightsource bp

Jun 02 2022

Minister of Energy and Energy Stuart R. Young, M.P, met Francis Mann, Lightsource bp Development Manager – UK and Trinidad & Tobago to discuss the current status of Project Lara where the parties currently involved are in the finalization of the commercial agreement for this project. Discussions also surrounded the completion and execution of the documentation by the end of June 2022.

Project Lara is a joint venture comprised of multi-national energy giants bptt and Shell, and specialist solar energy company Lightsource bp. The project will be constructed at two sites in both Brechin Castle, near the Point Lisas Industrial Estate and in Orange Grove, near Trinicity. The two sites will have a combined capacity to generate a total of 112.2 mw of solar electricity, more than the total generating capacity of most islands in the Eastern Caribbean.

The Government,through the work of the Ministry of Energy remains committed in its pursuit of the use of renewables in the energy mix. The integration of more solar projects allows Trinidad and Tobago to do its part towards global Greenhouse Gas Reduction.

 

 

PRC in Phoenix Park

Jun 10 2022

PRC Ambassador Fang Qiu confirmed two Chinese companies will become tenants at the Phoenix Park Industrial Estate. The Ambassador announce the news of the deal, which would be a part of PRC Belt and Road Initiative.

“Glad to know that two Chinese companies have signed the letters of offer with eTecK and will be tenants at Phoenix Park Industrial Estate (PPIE). PPIE is the first project in the Caribbean region to be implemented under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), and it will serve as a vital platform for enhancing practical co-operation between China and T&T. These two major light industry companies have confirmed their investment at PPIE, which will undoubtedly result in the creation of more jobs, an increase in manufactured goods exports, and a boost to T&T’s economic development. I believe that with the two governments’ co-operation, PPIE will be completed in the near future and will attract more companies to establish operations at PPIE!”

 

PRC boosts investment, backs Russia

TT and China have had a long history of bilateral relations. PRC ambassador Fang Qiu discussed co-operation in the covid19 pandemic, trade and investment, ease of doing business and the negative impact of the Russian war. Interest in TT grew through the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), expanding in the region. Under the framework, more co-operation and development are expected in agriculture, green energy, digital economy and information, communication and technology.

PRC was TT’s second-largest trading partner last year, with a trade volume of US$1.1 billion and export to PRC reached US$647 million. Qiu expected these figures to grow exponentially when the Phoenix Park Industrial Estate begins operations.

China and TT are true friends with Sino-TT relations in the best times . During his historic visit in 2013, President Xi Jinping said friends feel close even when they are thousands of miles away. Separated by vast oceans, a profound traditional friendship is based on historical bonds and shared values of mutual respect, equity and win-win co-operation. The two countries can count on each other on issues concerning core interests and matters of major concern.

Last year, President Xi and Prime Minister Rowley reached extensive consensus on deepening practical co-operation, which ushered in a new chapter of bilateral relations. In the wake of the pandemic, PRC and TT have been reaching out to each other and fighting against the virus . It is a vivid manifestation of amity and further strengthened time-honoured friendship with countless examples of excellent relations. Devoted to this relationship, cherished for centuries, the envoy is implementing the consensus to bring more tangible outcomes, building a shared future.

Practical co-operation is progressing smoothly with fruitful outcomes following the direction set by leaders. Despite the challenges imposed by the pandemic, co-operation witnessed substantial advancement. PRC has become the second-largest trading partner of TT, with a total trade volume of US$1.1 billion in 2021. TT exports to China reached US$647 million, a year-on-year growth of 93 per cent. Construction of Phoenix Park Industrial Estate,Savonetta, a flagship project under the BRI to be completed this year, will provide new impetus to the development of TT.

Benefits to both countries become a paradigm of relations between countries of varying sizes and social systems. PRC stands ready to work closely with TT to put into action the consensus of leaders and promote the high-quality development of BRI co-operation. PRC will also enhance co-operation under the Global Development Initiative, proposed by President Xi with support around the world to focus on agriculture, green energy, digital economy and ICT.

The envoy visited the Ministry of Trade and Investment in the manufacturing sector. Last year, the embassy successfully initiated the first China-TT Investment Co-operation Forum, to open a new window for better understanding of policies and market conditions between e business communities. The embassy facilitated the debut of ten TT enterprises at the fourth China International Import Expo, with a signing of commercial contracts with Chinese partners and showcasing TT manufacturing and export. Phoenix Park Industrial Estate will house Chinese enterprises in light manufacturing, logistics and other industries, which will serve as an innovative platform for investment co-operation and bring more business opportunities.

Ambassador Fang Qiu and Trade and Industry Minister Paula Gopee-Scoon met Angostura chairman Terrence Bharath during a visit to the distillery in Laventille in May.
Greater efforts will be made this year to expand investment, including promoting the Trade and Investment Convention hosted by the TT Manufacturers’ Association and holding the second China-TT Investment Co-operation Forum. Local enterprises participating at the fifth China International Import Expo in November will tap the potential of co-operation in trade and investment and strengthen business links with PRC and the rest of the world.

PRC attracted foreign investment and accumulated experience in improving its business environment. TT is improving its business environment with a series of policies and measures- enactment of the law on special economic zones, implementation of the business process re-engineering (BPR) recommendations and an automated construction permitting system, among reform initiatives on ease of doing business. These measures will further improve TT attractiveness for investment. As a partner, PRC rejoices progress will encourage more Chinese investors to turn to TT.

Lanterns hang over Chinatown on Charlotte Street, Port of Spain amid plans to twin the city with Shanghai.

As for future development, the pandemic highlighted the importance of ICT and the huge potential of the digital economy. Concrete actions have been taken by TT to adapt to this trend which will strengthen the policy framework and promote digital infrastructure. PRC is willing to help and is ready to share experience in these areas to improve the business environment and embrace a promising future together.

Co-operation continues in culture and education. Amity between the people holds the key to state-to-state relations. Since the first Chinese arrived in TT over 200 years ago, they have been living in harmony and are integrated into TT’s diverse culture, which laid a solid foundation for the development of bilateral relations. Cultural activities are promoted by civil organisations, such as the Dragon Boat Association, the Martial Arts Association, the Dai Ailian Foundation and the Chinese Steelpan Ensemble, which contribute to cultural exchanges.

The Confucius Institute at the University of West Indies, St Augustine , an outcome of President Xi’s visit, celebrated its anniversary at UWI St Augustine in 2019 and helped over 3,000 teenagers learn Chinese. PRC sponsored students on scholarships to study in its top universities. Thanks to these endeavours, many now fluent in Chinese have a good understanding of PRC history and culture, a driving force for China-TT friendship.

Both countries are promoting collaboration between universities with educational exchanges and co-operation. Twinning of Shanghai, the economic powerhouse and cultural highland of PRC with Port of Spain will add new vitality to exchanges.  PRC is ready to embrace a closer relationship in culture, education and people-to-people exchanges.

Since the outbreak of covid19, PRC contained the spread of the virus at home with the support of its 1.4 billion populace and is the first major economy to achieve recovery and positive growth. PRC withstood the impact of the new round of pandemic and Shanghai successfully recovered.

Success in combating the pandemic followed commitment to the principle of putting people and their lives first and the “dynamic zero-covid” policy which pursues controlling the spread of the virus in the shortest time with the lowest social cost. Data released by World Health Organization (WHO), show the accumulated excess mortality in China is minus 52,063, the lowest among all 194 countries in the WHO dataset, due to timely and effective control measures. The policy, while effective to safeguard health and lives, will be adjusted for more precise implementation and less impact on normal life. As a responsible major country, PRC is committed to advancing international co-operation against covid19 and bridging the vaccine gap. It provided over 2.2 billion doses of vaccines to over 120 countries and international organisations, accounting for one-third of vaccines administered outside China.

TT was among the first countries to help PRC which reciprocated with over a dozen batches of medical supplies, donated 100,000 doses of vaccines and facilitated the procurement of one million doses when the world was facing severe vaccine shortage.

At the regional Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in April, PRC offered to donate more anti-pandemic and medical supplies to Caribbean countries with diplomatic relations. PRC remains committed to working together to contain the pandemic, expand co-operation in medical and health care and build a community of health .

Following aggression in Ukraine, sweeping sanctions were imposed on Russia by the US and some Western countries. The conflict dealt a heavy blow to the global humanitarian situation and economy. With disrupted supply chains and declining supply of energy, food, metals and other bulk commodities, inflation in many countries was exacerbated, resulting in greater adverse impact globally.

The intergovernmental Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development with 38 member countries of the free world is a forum for developed democracies with high-income economies committed to the market economy, comprising over 62% of global GDP (US$49.6 trillion) The OECD, an official UN Observer. predicts the Ukraine crisis will reduce global economic growth and raise global inflation .

The Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) food price index averaged 159.3 points in March, its highest level since 1990. The World Food Programme (WFP) warned that a food crisis is inevitable with 220 million expected to suffer from acute malnutrition

Stock markets in major economies fell and the flows of international capital from emerging economies to the US in the continuous conflict may result in further deterioration of the balance of payments and debt situation of developing countries. The global economic turmoil affected all regions, including the Caribbean countries. Due to dependence on imports, the region is more vulnerable to fluctuations in global commodity prices.

Efforts for economic recovery and livelihood improvement are obstructed. All peace-loving countries can work together to end the conflict and restore the positive momentum of the global economy. Building a community of shared future for mankind is the core element in China’s diplomacy.

On Ukraine, PRC always determines its position based on the merits of the issue itself and maintains that the purposes and principles of the UN Charter should be upheld and that legitimate security concerns of all countries should be taken seriously. PRC pays high attention to the situation in Ukraine, proposing a six-point initiative and provided Ukraine with humanitarian aid.

PRC believes the top priority should be to stop the armed conflict between the two countries and made unremitting efforts to this end. After the breakout of the conflict, President Xi held video meetings with leaders of Russia and other major countries, urging the issue be resolved through negotiations. PRC State Councillor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi spoke with foreign ministers and political leaders of a range of countries, seeking a diplomatic resolution, to maintain negotiations between Russia and Ukraine .

PRC firmly opposes any unilateral sanction that has no basis in international laws. History and facts prove that sanctions are never a fundamental and effective way to solve problems but only bring difficulties to the economy and livelihoods. After all, it is the ordinary people that bear the dire consequences of the sanctions. With multiple global challenges , the theme of the times, world peace and development are at stake but do not fall from the sky. The conflict has again proved that, in the turbulent waters of global crisis, countries are not in their own small boats, but in the same big boat with a shared future. The pursuit of exclusive or absolute security over the insecurity of others, only leads to collective insecurity and suffering other countries don’t deserve. The only way out for mankind is not unilateralism, hegemony, or power politics but true multilateralism and international solidarity to overcome difficulties.

PRC believes development holds the key to all problems and security is a pre-requisite for development. The world needs to strike a balance between development and security. President Xi proposed the Global Development Initiative (GDI) and the Global Security Initiative (GSI) which derive from China’s 5000-year culture and wisdom and embody the vision of a community with a shared future for mankind. They echo the common aspiration of the international community for peace, co-operation and development and will contribute to the process of peace and development.

PRC attaches great importance to concerns of small developing countries like TT, which are more vulnerable to global turbulence and stands ready to work with them to implement the GSI and the GDI to safeguard security in traditional and non-traditional areas and to improve lives in pursuit of common development.

 

 

Bear and Dragon Kung Fu

On 16 Jun, the Kremlin was reported to have said President Xi Jinping backed the legality of the Russian war in Ukraine during talks with Vladimir Putin in one of the most significant shifts since the conflict began over 100 days ago.

The PRC President noted the legitimacy of Russia’s actions to protect fundamental national interests in the face of challenges to its security created by external forces. Russia escalated tension with the EU over energy and threatens EU security.

PRC alignment and cooperation on energy, finance and trade supports Russia amid international sanctions Through loans regarded as a debt-trap, PRC invested in strategic assets of CARICOM and energy, ports, mining, timber and technology are key resources now at risk, following escalating conflict with Western democracies due to spying and stealing. Banned PRC companies include Huawei and CGTN.

Diplomatic words belie the harsh reality of totalitarian tyranny, hypersonic hegemony and communist corruption.

 

 

T&TEC

State-owned T&TEC is taking less power from the most efficient producer and forcing the National Gas Company (NGC) to sell an additional 1.2 billion standard cubic feet per month to T&TEC. With the country desperately short on natural gas for which the world paying a premium, this worsens a bad situation. T&TEC is notorious for not paying its bills to NGC, which it owes almost $4.5 billion in unpaid bills for natural gas.

At the centre of the problem is T&TEC’s fear of another islandwide black out. According to the investigation into the blackout, T&TEC never planned for such a scenario, where there could be a complete failure, and never put in place a back up line as a contingency.

With no back up line and the company not having confidence in all the equipment at Trinidad Generation Unlimited (TGU), T&TEC tried to spread the risk by buying more power from Powergen and Trinity power and less form TGU, the most modern and most efficient of the power producers which utilises less natural gas to generate power.

It could not come at a worse time for the country and the NGC as prices for gas and related products are at record levels and production is significantly curtailed.

Strife between the two state companies arose when the NGC President Mark Loquan told the Energy Conference that the country has to ensure it uses each molecule of natural gas in the most efficient way, including sending those molecules to the most efficient use in the power generation sector.

Given its confidentiality obligations, NGC is precluded from disclosing specific volume information.  NGC is in discussions with T&TEC to optimise the use of gas supplied to T&TEC thereby maximising the volumes that can be supplied to the Petchem sector. This has been a deliberate focus of NGC in its discussions with T&TEC and other related parties as NGC seeks to maximise value to its stakeholders.

On the rationale behind the decision. T&TEC eventually responded.

“Decisions concerning the operations of the grid are dynamic. Coming out of the incident on February 16th 2022, T&TEC has received and reviewed the report form the Cabinet appointed investigation committee. Based on the said report we are working with the Independent Power Producers (IPPs) and other stakeholders to implement the recommendations. This process is ongoing to ensure that we provide a reliable and stable supply of electricity to our customers.”

Public Utilities Minister Marvin Gonzales was more forthcoming and said that he was expecting a report from T&TEC on the issue.

“I am awaiting a full report from T&TEC on this particular matter, there are some issues with respect to TGU and the efficiency of some of the machines there, so T&TEC is working on it and is in conversation with the TGU to resolve all of those outstanding issues, but just to ensure that we don’t have the possibility of another partial islandwide blackout, .., to ensure there is sustainability on the national grid, T&TEC took this position temporarily in order to be satisfied that the issues at TGU are addressed to its satisfaction before they can go back taking the amount of electricity from the TGU plant.”

The problem had nothing to do with T&TEC having to put in place the extra line and while such a line will assist in ensuring that there is not another islandwide blackout it has everything to do with “T&TEC having that level of confidence in the full operation of the TGU plant.”

On the cost to the country of T&TEC’s actions, the Minister said: “It is of concern to me as Minister of Public Utilities because, of course, it is causing some concerns to the NGC. It is a matter that I am in active discussion with Minister Young. The Chairman of T&TEC is also very much concerned about the matter and we are putting our collective heads together to address the problem.”

Gonzales said it was likely to be resolved in the next two to three months.
The countryis wasting 1.2 billion standard cubic feet of natural gas per month.

He replied: “Exactly! So this is not sustainable especially given the price of gas at this point in time and given the fact that T&TEC is already owing NGC huge sums of money. We certainly cannot allow this to continue. So this is something that Minister Young and I have been discussing and the Chairman of the T&TEC is also working on a special report to present to me on this particular matter.”

Profligate .public companies funded by taxes cannot hide behind confidentiality and must observe freedom of information and prudence in spending taxes. NGC is guilty of astronomical losses on Train 1 and is no role model. Urgent divestment of these bloated bureaucracies is the only way to staunch the bleeding of resources.

 

 

Proman

Jun 21 2022

Swiss methanol producer Proman has taken delivery of the first of its new generation methanol-powered ships.

Proman Stena Bulk, a joint venture between Proman and one of the world’s largest tanker shipping companies Stena Bulk of Sweden, confirmed that the first methanol-powered new build vessel under its partnership has been delivered and is preparing for commercial operation.

The 49,990 DWT Stena Pro Patria is the first of six state-of-the-art, IMOIIMeMAX dual-fuel mid-range (MR) tankers being built at Guangzhou Shipyard International Co Ltd (GSI) in PRC for Proman Stena Bulk and Proman. The Stena Pro Patria will leave GSI Shipyard to bunker in Ulsan, South Korea and will arrive in T&T for her naming ceremony later this year.

“This is significant for Trinidad and Tobago, being the first such naming ceremony for a methanol newbuild ship to be hosted in-country.”

Stena Pro Patria is named in honour of Dennis Patrick, a long-standing former CEO of Proman’s subsidiary Methanol Holdings (Trinidad) Ltd (MHTL), who passed away in 2019.
The vessel will run on methanol, representing Proman Stena Bulk’s commitment as part of the shipping industry’s sustainable fuels pathway.

With an expected consumption of 12,500 tonnes of methanol marine fuel per annum, the Stena Pro Patria will be a low-emission vessel, eliminating local pollutants including SOx and particulate matters, cutting NOx emissions by 60 per cent and reducing CO2 emissions versus conventional marine fuels.

The delivery of the Stena Pro Patria represents an important milestone for Proman Stena Bulk, a significant step forward as the joint venture continues to support the development of methanol as a proven marine fuel and the role it can play as part of global shipping’s urgent transition to a more sustainable future.

David Cassidy, CEO of Proman also noted, “The delivery of the Stena Pro Patria represents a major milestone for the success of our joint venture with Stena Bulk, as well as sending an important message to the market – that methanol is a reliable and available marine fuel that can reduce global shipping emissions in the short, medium and long term. The vessel’s state-of-the-art fuel consumption and engine technology are important steps towards more sustainable shipping; it will be vital as new low emission fuels emerge to also focus on energy efficiency.”

Erik Hånell, president and CEO of Stena Bulk said it is only through such collaboration that climate goals can be met. Anita Gajadhar, MD of Proman Shipping, Marketing and Logistics added that the delivery is just the beginning of the low-emission methanol transition for the company’s own vessels, and moving forward, for third-party shipping companies too.

Being a pioneer in the petrochemical industry, T&T has a remarkable opportunity to benefit from this development as a leading producer of methanol. Its existing Point Lisas plants and infrastructure are well-positioned to enable emissions reduction targets across the maritime sector.
Two further vessels, the Stena Pro Marine and Stena Promise are due for delivery later this year

 

 

Proman donates US$300,000 to UWI chair

Methanol and ammonia producer Proman and The University of the West Indies (UWI) recently announced the continuation of the company’s support for the Dennis Patrick Chair in Petroleum Engineering, which began in 1997. Patrick was the former managing director of Methanol Holdings (Trinidad) Ltd (MHTL).

The renewal of the US$300,000 partnership, covering the period 2021 and 2022, took place on May 16 at the office of the principal, where MHTL chairman Dr Euric Bobb and CFO Ravi Cardinez made the presentation to UWI St Augustine pro vice chancellor and principal Prof Brian Copeland, Prof Andrew Jupiter, co-ordinator of petroleum studies and current holder of the Dennis Patrick Chair, and Prof Raffie Hosein, head of the university’s Chemical Engineering Department.

Bobb said, “At Proman and MHTL we are extremely proud of this partnership with the UWI, which spans over two decades. Investing in our nation’s youth is a key part of our company’s commitment to Trinidad and Tobago’s continued growth.

“Our colleague Dennis Patrick was a passionate advocate for education and sharing our wealth of industry experience. He was an invaluable mentor for many of the individuals who have gone on to become current and future leaders in our business, and the establishment of this chair in his name ensures that his pioneering legacy within the industry lives on.”

Jupiter said, “The partnership between the UWI and Proman, through MHTL, is one the university can endorse as the longest-standing relationship with any chair throughout the Engineering Department.

“Through Proman’s support, graduates are making a tremendous contribution at the Ministry of Energy and Energy Industries, as well as within other energy companies locally and internationally.

“From our first group of graduates in 1999 to the students completing programmes within the faculty in 2021, 202 students have graduated with MScs in petroleum engineering and 121 students with the diploma in petroleum engineering.

“Of special note is the partnership established with the UWI and the University of Guyana, where five students from Guyana completed the MSc in petroleum engineering programme. This demonstrates the significance of the work being done through this initiative both locally and regionally.”

Among students graduating from the MSc in petroleum engineering programme is Proman maintenance engineer Enoch Ghany, who works in the company’s methanol division.

As a direct beneficiary of this programme, Enoch acknowledged both Proman and the university’s contribution to the development of the wider energy sector through this investment.

He said the programme “delivered more than just academic knowledge. As a graduate, it completely altered my thinking about the vast possibilities that can be derived from a career rooted in engineering. This programme not only benefits the students at the university, but it also adds value to the economy of TT.”

 

 

 

UWI student chapter wins SPE award

The Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) International announced that the student chapter of The University of the West Indies, St Augustine, won the 2022 presidential award for outstanding student chapter.   The UWI said student chapter awards recognise those who succeed in fulfilling SPE’s mission by serving local members. The awards honour exemplary efforts in industry engagement, operations and planning, community and social outreach and more.

The presidential award for outstanding student chapter is the highest honour a student chapter can receive. It recognises the top five percent of student chapters around the world that are exemplary in the scoring categories and are presented at the SPE annual technical conference and exhibition to be held in October in Houston, Texas

“A congratulatory letter from SPE President Kamel Ben Naceur notes that the student chapter should be very proud of its many exceptional accomplishments over the past year—especially during this unique time.”

Naceur said, “This achievement would not be possible without the dedication of the officers. Thank you for volunteering your time to fulfil SPE’s mission by serving local members and furthering the advancement of the society.”

Professor Raffie Hosein, head of UWI’s Department of Chemical Engineering in the Faculty of Engineering, was extremely proud of the student chapter achievements.

“The UWI SPE Student Chapter has won this award three consecutive times, in 2020, 2021 and again in 2022.”

The UWI Society of Petroleum Engineers student chapter officers are Daniel Joseph (president), Jordan Jafar (vice-president), Kerneese Ramjarrie (secretary), Nishkal Maharaj (treasurer), Aaron Mungal (membership chair), Arun Ramcharitar (social activities chair), Joshua Encinas (communications and outreach), Rishma Persad (programme), Professor Raffie Hosein (faculty advisor), and Juené Weekes (energy sustainability officer).

As a patron of UWI and UOG, ECO congatulates the Faculty of Engineering and Proman for supporting STEM in this centennial year of ICTA, the founding college of UWI in 1960.

 

 

LNG

Minister of Energy and Energy Industries Stuart Young dismissed claims that Trinidad and Tobago was having trouble meeting liquefied natural gas (LNG) outputs and was unable to capitalise on the new markets. Reuters published an article which said that as the European market sought to move away from Russian gas, TT was unable to meet the demand and was far behind and despite Peru’s political instability, its LNG shipments were increasing rapidly with Europe as its target market.

“TT, Latin America’s largest LNG producer with enough reserves and capacity to meet a portion of the incremental demand, has been unable to reverse an export fall expected to continue for a third consecutive year in 2022 as it struggles to bring more gas output online.”

At the Energy Conference, Port of Spain, Young criticised the report, which sought to compare the outputs of TT and Peru, another LNG provider in the Latin America region,

“Another Reuters article, attempting rather mischievously without the correct information to compare LNG production in Peru off a one-train facility, with what we are doing here in TT utilising three of our four trains. I will use this opportunity just to put on record that there is a lot of fallacy in that. It is not based on a proper fact comparison. Our LNG exports, even with a reduced natural gas output, (are) double, more than double what is taking place out of Peru.”

At the right time statistics will be provided to show that production levels out of Atlantic LNG increased and were projected to increase this year when compared to 2021.

“The lesson is, don’t always believe what you hear the naysayers say as they attack us here in TT. I can assure you the Government is working overtime, through me leading the ministry, to ensure sustainability of not only LNG but of our petchem sector, and we do think outside the box. Hopefully, in the not-too-distant future we will be able to say more on that.”

UNC MP David Lee said the article vindicated Opposition statements that Young has misled the country on the state of the energy sector. In a recent CNN interview, Young also told untruths to the global community and exposed internationally “the shambles and decimation his government has brought on the national energy sector. The report which highlights this nation’s persistent crash in gas production shows that the Opposition was right to call out Young for being delusional as he told CNN, the global community and then repeated those lies in the mid-year review, that this country was ramping up production of LNG and natural gas.

“Even the Prime Minister has told the Energy Conference that ‘Gas supply between 2024 to 2027 will be tight.’ Therefore, it is clear that Minister Young misled the country on the true state of our oil and gas sector.”

He accused the Government of plunging TT’s energy sector into ruin and misleading the population into thinking there was hope, but the Reuters article was proof that the energy sector was crippled and stifled of any revenue to be gained from the prevailing windfall prices.

“The only person who would have believed Young is Minister Young himself as no logical citizen would think that a country that has had no growth in gas production for seven years would magically achieve an increase. Minister Young should feel ashamed as only two weeks ago he accused the former PP administration of decimating the energy sector.” Lee said the writing was on the international wall, the evidence in the global domain,and it was Young’s government and his own failures which had destroyed TT’s energy sector.

 

 

 

Commodity dependency

May 27 2022

Nick O’Hara and Rob Freda

“The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”

We are all familiar with this quote, and yet too often we think it doesn’t apply to us. In the context of the climate emergency and the need to stop greenhouse gas emissions, the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and striving for the same results.

Perpetuating this kind of insanity seems to dominate the menu for next week’s annual Energy Conference in Port-of-Spain, when T&T’s oil and gas industry convenes with senior politicians to discuss a way forward. The theme of this year’s event is, “Leveraging the industry’s strengths for the energy transition.”

The conference agenda suggests its main course will be serving up more of the same, with few fresh ideas for meaningful transition. Make no mistake, more of the same isn’t simply storing up future problems. The country already suffers from increased ambient temperature and extreme weather. Erosion linked to rising sea levels and storm surges is evident at popular destinations such as Las Cuevas and Blanchisseuse, on the north coast. Tobago’s Pigeon Point, arguably the jewel in the Republic’s tourist crown, is facing serious erosion and we all know about the floods.

The government’s 2018 Vulnerability and Capacity Assessment (VCA) report called for urgent and comprehensive adaptation and mitigation measures. It warned that failure to act immediately would have disastrous consequences for national food and water supply, fisheries stock, physical infrastructure, cities, oil and gas and industrial assets to name but a few.
A few months ago, in her foreword to the first Biennial Update Report to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, Hon. Camille Robinson-Regis (then Planning and Development Minister) acknowledged the country’s challenges.

She wrote that climate change has the potential to undermine T&T’s “priority sustainable development objectives such as poverty eradication, a healthy environment, health care and leaving no one behind.”

Next week presents an opportunity to change course. Held by the Energy Chamber for more than 30 years, the Energy Conference started as a petroleum conference and in essence remains such. Whilst energy transition is billed as the focus, the Energy Chamber convenes a separate Sustainable Energy Conference, focussing on renewables, energy efficiency and decarbonisation in the Caribbean region. This separation of events speaks volumes.

Ensuring that the energy industry’s objectives are aligned with the government’s stated societal objectives is much harder than using fashionable thematic language for conferences.

According to its own promotional literature, next week’s conference is organised “by the energy industry for the energy industry.”

This is concerning, because this is essentially the old petroleum industry which has no incentive to change its core function of exploiting oil and gas reserves. Insofar as decarbonisation is covered, there is a risk it will amount to little more than ‘greenwashing’, with the industry marking its own homework using inadequate investor-led environmental, social and governance (ESG) metrics.

We write this to offer another solution, not confront the oil and gas industry. Next week’s attendees are a critical part of the solution of how we transition to decarbonised energy supply. Over many decades T&T has been a leader in delivering oil, natural gas and petrochemicals. Today it is stuck between a rock and a hard place with the inherent conflict of producing core products whose usage have the potential to be dirty and destructive.

On the one hand we have the sector that provides growth, jobs and the tax base, on the other those net zero ambitions. Something must give. Let’s acknowledge that the industry is operating in an economic framework that is not built for adaptation– that is not the industry’s fault. The real energy transition we need cannot be left to the industry alone to figure out.

We should look to technologies that have emerged over the last decade and that are in development today. If we adopt a more holistic market-facing framework in how we think about transition, mitigation and assets, we can start to thread the eye of this needle. The fundamental challenge is how to transition to low/ zero emissions and clean systems while generating profits, maintaining job, and tax base levels.

As is the case with any complex problem, there are complex solutions. The superficial band-aid that is renewable energy has an uphill battle on addressing the climate crisis. The necessary solution is every bit socio-political as it is technological. It requires fundamental mindset shift.

Firstly, communities need to transition out of commodity dependency. Oil and gas may seem like easy revenue, but the long-term value and sustainability is questionable. Don’t forget, this is a global market that T&T has no control over, but rather is swept up by the waves of its volatility.

According to GlobalData’s latest report, natural gas production in T&T is expected to grow by an average of two per cent in the next three years and reach over 3,400 million cubic feet per day (mmcfd). However, in 2024, production will start declining at a rate of three per cent to a value of 3,200 mmcfd in 2025, assuming no new projects are introduced to compensate.

Instead of remaining trapped, we should nurture emerging technologies around high-tech manufacturing and brands. Localised manufacturing, not dependent on global supply chains, lifts up local economies.
Commodity reliant countries have the opportunity to use innovative clean tech to create localised and decentralised manufacturing and tourism corridors, shifting it from commodities to a larger value-added export economy. This would give T&T not only greater control of its destiny, but the prospect of a more prosperous future which could be sustained over the longer term.

Rather than fully decommissioning (at great cost) off-shore rigs and platforms at the end of their life-cycle, these assets can be transitioned into high-tech off-shore manufacturing centres. Technology already exists to develop aquaponic food production systems, for example, that would transform offshore sites into localised food centres. This could help address the decline in food security—a growing problem in the Caribbean—and halt the trend of declining food self-sufficiency… something the current commodity trap is failing to do.

Offshore facilities can also be transitioned into producing carbon neutral hydrogen-based fuels. When combined with decentralised micro-manufacturing, the clean system becomes circular, yielding 100 per cent clean products and better economies.

The opportunity costs of not focusing on these techno-economic opportunities will leave us stuck squarely in the climate and commodity traps. Guided and enabled by government policy to diversify and strengthen the economy, T&T can be a global beacon in transitioning commodity-dependent regions into clean, self-dependent, and thriving economies.

Nobody pretends that the path towards meaningful energy transition is not fraught with challenge, both for energy companies and society at large. Whilst the formal agenda for next week has been set, it is not too late to steer discussion towards new thinking.
The energy industry has a unique opportunity to use its extensive expertise, knowledge and skills to become a global leader in delivering clean energy… and avoid the insanity of striving for more of the same.

Government is failing in its top priority to maintain law and order. Divestment of all state assets can generate wealth and create a shareholding democracy. As the carnage continuies, politicians must face relaity and end the misery which decades of misrule created.

 

 

Carbon Zero Institute

21 May

Citizens planted moringa (Saijan) beans at Let’s Plant a Mini Forest on World Forest Day, the launch of Sustainable Agricultural Carbon Sink, Waterloo Road, Couva on March 21, 2021.

All can contribute to improving climate by planting a moringa tree, brought by Indian farmers to the region. Throughout its lifetime, one moringa tree can remove at least 80 kgs of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere per year as moringa trees sequester over 20 times the amount of carbon dioxide other trees absorb. So when some people consider adopting climate-friendly practices, driving an electric car or using solar power, climate activist Donald Baldeosingh advises every effort counts, including planting a tree.

Since creating the Carbon Zero Institute of Trinidad and Tobago (CZITT pronounced “seize it”) in 2015, Baldeosingh has been on a mission to help people become more climate conscious by encouraging them to be more aware of the issue and adopt more climate-friendly behaviours in their daily lives. Donald Baldeosingh became more aware of TT’s high carbon dioxide emissions as Petrotrin chairman from 1996-2000.

Baldeosingh said, “I hope that our citizenry can start looking around with a more open mind to what is happening with climate change. We have to adjust every aspect of life in Trinidad and Tobago because we have spent more than 100 years producing carbon through our oil and gas industry.”

An electrical engineer, Baldeosingh worked in TT’s oil and gas industry. While serving as Petrotrin chairman from 1996-2000 t he became more attentive to “what was going on around him” which eventually sparked his climate activism.

“I had a stint as the chairman of Petrotrin in the late 1990s during which time I was horrified when I understood better what contribution we were making to global carbon emissions.”

During his chairmanship, 8 operational ammonia plants collectively produced over three million tonnes of ammonia a year, emitting two and a half tonnes of carbon dioxide for every tonne of ammonia produced. Today, ten ammonia plants which collectively produce over five million metric tonnes of ammonia a year, making the country one of the world’s largest exporters of ammonia. emit at least 12.5 million metric tonnes of carbon dioxide.

Even if those emissions seem minuscule to some, ammonia production is not the only source of carbon emissions. Seven methanol plants, the Phoenix Park Gas Processors Ltd (one of the largest natural gas processing facilities in the Western Hemisphere), power generators to produce electricity and people’s daily activities all generate emissions.

While methanol plants use carbon dioxide as a feedstock and displaces a small amount of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, Baldeosingh said the net emissions produced from manufacturing are greater. In 2019, the Carbon Zero Institute of TT (CZITT) collaborated with JMMB Bank to distribute seedlings to staff to raise awareness on the importance of planting trees in the fight against climate change.

“Then our power generation is very inefficient because we have a lot of plants that operate at simple cycle gas designs where they produce a large amount of heat that goes up into the air. Only recently we have the TGU plant that captures that heat and uses it to generate more power.”

Moved to act, Baldeosingh created the short-lived Caribbean Centre for Climate Change for climate education and research at Petrotrin, Pointe-a-Pierre, in his final year as chairman. In the years that followed, Baldeosingh contributed to research on the renewable energy potential of the Caribbean and chaired the Tiger Group,  an association of business leaders working to expand information technology capability and examine the country’s carbon trading potential.

Under carbon trading schemes – also called cap and trade schemes – Government sets a limit or cap on the amount of carbon dioxide emissions allowed from carbon producers, like an oil and gas producer. The permitted emissions are known as carbon credits. Depending on the arrangement, if a company curbs its emissions, and there are excess credits on its permit, the excess can be sold to another company on the carbon market for cash. If a company is unable to curb its emissions, or surpasses the credits on its permit, it will have to pay or buy more credits for its excess emissions.

In 2008, Baldeosingh chaired an international conference on carbon trading. When TT became a signatory to the global Paris Climate Agreement in 2015, Baldeosingh wanted to step up his contributions to reduce its carbon emissions which led him to create CZITT. The group aims to educate the general public but its target audience is secondary school students.

“They are the ones that are going to live with this climate-change nightmare that we’re creating at the moment. They are going to be living with what we did or didn’t do in these years.”

In 2019, CZITT held a National Secondary Schools Climate Quiz which was broadcast locally and in several Caribbean countries. Before schools were physically closed in March 2020 owing to the pandemic, a second quiz was held and filmed. Baldeosingh is currently seeking sponsors to fund its broadcast.

“Very unfortunately we do not have sufficient advertisers who are interested in advertising so that we can show it on television. It’s something that is of a high level of interest, it’s very good quality and it’s local programming with young people expressing their critical thoughts and thinking on climate change. We would like to show that on television for the whole country to see it.”

During the pandemic, CZITT also created an eLearning platform (czitt-ed.org) for Caribbean Examination Council (CXC) pupils. Over 10,000 across the region benefited from over 500 educational videos on the website. The group’s most recent educational campaign – targeting young people – challenged those 24 years and older to create a video showing what the world would look like if they suddenly woke up in 2050, the year by which the world is supposed to be carbon neutral.

“We also have something called the 1,000-tree challenge where we work with schools and businesses to plant 1,000 trees. We account for the trees by putting them onto a system that shows where the trees are planted, how much carbon they are expected to sequester (remove from the air), and which organisation is getting that carbon offset against their carbon footprint.”

St Augustine Girls’ High School (SAGHS) pupil Shannah Pustam presented a pledged signed by pupils in 2020. to former President Anthony Carmona, a patron of the Carbon Zero Institute of Trinidad and Tobago (CZITT).
So far, the group has planted trees with former President Carmona at the President’s House, the High Commission of India, Republic Bank and Bafta Sports. They also distributed seeds in collaboration with the JMMB Group. In most tree planting , moringa trees are used because they grow quickly and absorb a large amount of carbon.

“This tree planting effort is linked to a second project which we call the Sustainable Agricultural Carbon Sink. This entails working with farmers to plant trees, keep the trees alive and they get support for their farming operations.”

Farmers are encouraged to practise agroforestry by planting moringa trees and then planting crops below these trees as they grow. This farming model is more economically and environmentally sustainable. Farmers will be able to play their part in reducing carbon emissions, protect soil health, increase a range of regulating ecosystem services, enhance biodiversity and earn an increased income when the produce of moringa trees are harvested.

“We also encourage farmers to create beehives for honey production and to pollinate their plants. If they are able , we are also encouraging them to put a pond where water can be collected for the dry season and they can also keep tilapia in the pond, so that they can get fish farming going.

“We want to create a farming model that the farmers can use to create a sustainable livelihood while absorbing carbon emissions and helping us feed the country from locally produced food.”

While TT “has been a very relaxed country in terms of how our carbon emission profile has increased over the years,” according to Baldeosingh, he warns people there is no time to waste to reduce carbon emissions.

From rising sea levels, higher sea surface temperatures and coastal erosion, to more extreme weather, Baldeosingh said it is time for people to increase their efforts to contribute to the climate fight.

“The level of awareness is still not high enough and the level of action is way lower than what it needs to be. We have done a few things recently that will tend to reduce carbon emissions, like the decision to remove duties and taxes on electric vehicles is a step in the right direction. There has been action at the policy level and writing policy that is in sync with what the world is talking about which speaks the right language. But what we need to do is connect the initiatives with a form of messaging to the people about reducing emissions.”

Baldeosingh said it’s good the Government is striving to create environmentally-friendly policies but they fall flat when they are not supported by efforts to teach people about adopting more environmentally-friendly practices. Baldeosingh pointed out the recent initiative to give 1.6 million LED bulbs to 400,000 households. While good, the initiative missed its mark because it wasn’t supported by a campaign to educate people about saving energy by doing things like turning off electrical appliances when they aren’t in use.

“In my opinion, we should be maximising on the opportunity for rooftop solar. I think that we need to develop a culture of conservation and promote solar power on both a domestic and commercial level in a much bigger way. People who are further away from the electricity grid should be incentivised to install solar power and to be able to sell their surplus power to the grid and receive a credit to their electricity bill.”

There are currently plans to develop the Brechin Castle and Orange Grove solar parks. The Brechin Castle project will span 587 acres and is expected to produce 225,303 megawatt hours (MWh) of electricity which will supply 31,500 households, while the Orange Grove park will occupy 148 acres of land, produce 50,417 MWh and supply 7,000 households.

While Baldeosingh said the parks are commendable, he is urging the Government to begin supporting efforts for people to make greater use of solar power and other renewable energy sources.

“The oil and gas industry itself is dying because the world is weaning itself off hydrocarbons and therefore it is time for us to move the whole country towards a decarbonised life and decarbonised industries. We can actually have an economy that is based on decarbonisation by coming up with more ways to do it and create more sustainable livelihoods.”

 

 

 

Green energy

 The Energy Chamber will convene its annual conference under the theme – Leveraging the industry’s strengths for the energy transition. Among speakers scheduled to attend is the Prime Minister, who has often spoken at this event to outline energy policy but when he addresses the conference this year, it cannot be the same old position Government has advanced in the past.

Repeatedly, the Prime Minister has said the country will not abandon oil and gas but must instead exploit existing infrastructure and opportunities as the world transitions. On the international stage, he has called on developed countries to provide support to other countries that need to adjust to a new energy regime.

Disruptions to trade wrought by the pandemic, the war in Ukraine, weaknesses in local systems, a sluggish non-energy sector and the increasingly desperate situation posed by the climate crisis necessitate a radical overhaul of how we meet our energy needs and the role played by energy revenue. Now is not the time for a tepid rehash of old compromises that put us in a halfway house. Dr Rowley must outline a clearer path forward. The omens are not good.

When Finance Minister Colm Imbert presented his mid-year review, he did little to suggest any real desire to see dependence on petrochemicals reduced. In fact, it was the opposite, with the minister trumpeting petrochemical windfalls and saying the sector had supplied a lifejacket to the economy, even though it is commodity price fluctuations that have brought about the current outlook.

During the same sitting, the Prime Minister alluded to ongoing talks with a preferred bidder for the Pointe-a-Pierre refinery, while Energy Minister Stuart Young defended his appearance on a US television show in which he declared willingness to assist the world in weaning itself off Russian gas. All missed an opportunity to set out a bolder plan.

What makes this particularly noteworthy is the fact that this country has voiced commitment to green energy in the past while nonetheless signalling a desire to partner with traditional energy companies that contributed much to local revenues but also to global carbon emissions.

Some fiscal measures will change consumer habits (for example, people will think twice about fuel consumption, given cuts to the subsidy) and some major solar-energy projects have been supported. Plans do not appear to be meaningful enough.

At the same time, there is growing alarm over inaction by key nation states to meet targets for emission cuts. Worse, there are concerns that some of the same companies that today have pledged to turn away from petrochemicals are, in secret, planning a series of “carbon bomb” projects all over the world that could take the planet over the edge.

Dr Rowley must come better and show exactly how serious we are about further diversifying our economy and embracing green energy beyond the short term.

 

 

Oxford Business : tools to begin transition

Jun 16 2022

Harry van Schaick, Managing Editor of the Oxford Business Group told a virtual event – titled Renewable Energy—Transition for Trinidad and Tobago -hosted by RBC Trinidad and Tobago that T&T has the right tools to begin the transition towards clean energy, but current dependence on fossil fuels in terms of revenue generation must be carefully managed.
Van Schaick noted that this country did have the resources to begin the transition, and could even adopt the model of operation taken by its neighbour Barbados to begin the process.

He acknowledged that the recent surge in energy prices however, created a scenario where reliance on the energy sector was even more tempting than before but tapping into the transition sooner rather than later could benefit the country further.

“We’re referring to reduced dependence on the same fossil fuels for economic growth. So currently, this might be hard to achieve for obvious reasons as oil prices are seeing historic levels at historic highs, and the temptation remains to focus on increasing fossil fuel output. When we really should be thinking about this pivot, I want to turn that point on its head. And really tapping into Trinidad and Tobago’s vast, wind and solar potential for domestic electricity consumption would really allow it to export more natural gas and use that extra revenue to finance its own long-term Energy Transition Plans, as we’ve seen in other markets.”

Van Schaick said the financial sector of this country was also well placed to push investment into clean energy, which was another plus for the nation.

“We’re saying here is that we need to be smart about how we transition, especially in hydrocarbon rich economies, such as T&T, and really building in mechanisms, I suppose to mitigate the transition risk. Now it was going to the clean energy transition will only be successful with the support of financial institutions with climate finance, lending and broader investment in green infrastructure and in Trinidad and Tobago.

Darryl White, Chief Executive Officer while driving the discussion amongst the panel questioned if all power generation in Trinidad and Tobago could be achieved by 2050 as he said “an entire ecosystem and infrastructural change that would have to accompany that.”

He also referred to the February 16 island wide blackout which was reportedly caused by a fallen tree, as another reason why reviewing the power grid needed to be done.

 

 

Renewables

Jun 07 2022

Nick O’Hara, Jacopo Buongiorno

One August day four years ago the skies cleared, allowing one of these authors to pick pumpkins in Moruga, on land farmed by a neighbour’s friend who was not harvesting his crop that year. In the proceeding days, tropical showers had intermittently swept in to turn the farmland plots to bog. Lugging heavy sacks of pumpkins, knee-deep in mud is not an experience one quickly forgets.

Many readers will know Moruga as home to the Scorpion pepper, reputedly the world’s hottest. They may not have driven through the largely flat landscape of acre upon acre of arable fields, sectioned off by narrow tracks, producing a variety of fruit and vegetables.

This agriculture must be protected. T&T needs to increase self-sufficiency in food production and cannot afford to sacrifice the fields of Moruga to energy needs, just as we must preserve our pristine tropical forests. But it is exactly such areas of the country that would eventually need to be sacrificed if T&T pins its clean energy future on solar.

We should applaud the Government’s efforts to make T&T a cleaner nation. Project Lara Solar Park will see construction of solar sites near Point Lisas and Trincity, generating a combined ¼ (or .24) Terawatt-hours of electricity annually.
Based on T&T’s current electricity usage of 8.63 Terawatt-hours per year, 35 projects on the scale of Project Lara would be needed to supply all of T&T’s electricity, using a few hundred square kilometres.

Unfortunately, electricity accounts for only 4% of T&T’s overall annual energy consumption of around 200 Terawatt-hours. For solar energy to provide the other 96% of T&T’s energy, the country would need to devote more than 60% of its land area to solar farms, or 815 Project Lara-scale sites.

Alongside southern farmland, this would inevitably mean cutting into the forests of the northern or central mountain ranges. This would amount to a destruction of valuable resources of the highest order and destroy the prospects of a major potential revenue stream: eco-tourism.

Like wind and other renewable energy sources, solar makes us feel good; that we are doing something to meet the climate emergency challenge facing our planet. But we need to be open-eyed about the realities of what renewables can deliver.
As elsewhere, T&T needs to de-risk its energy infrastructure whilst simultaneously adapting to climate change. However, if renewables are the centrepiece of the energy strategy moving forward, then a serious rethink is required.

Let’s factor in the intermittent and unreliable nature of renewable energy production. Renewables rely on the existing energy distribution system, namely the national grid.
This centralised architecture lacks the resilience to withstand the extreme weather conditions—both predictable and unpredictable—T&T increasingly faces. Those who live in Moruga and across rural southern Trinidad are accustomed to power outages and renewables will not fix this.

The solution, as we adapt to a warming climate and rising sea levels is to reduce our reliance on the grid. The solution is a new type of distributed energy source that is low-carbon, compact, stable, flexible and geographically unconstrained.

The solution is portable “plug and play” nuclear microreactor technology, such as the Nuclear Batteries (NB) being developed by US companies Westinghouse, X-energy and BWXT. This revolutionary innovation provides on demand, clean, economic, resilient and safe energy in any location.

The NB is a small but powerful stand-alone energy platform that can be directly integrated into manufacturing functions or industrial plants, including an offshore oil rig.
It’s a solution bypassing the need for massive, low-use centralised infrastructure such as the national grid, energy storage, and fuel distribution networks. The NB can operate for 5-10 years, powering virtually anything with no need for continuous fuel supply, after which they are “recharged” with nuclear fuel.

Whilst innovative, the concept of small portable microreactors is not new. In the early 1960s the US. Army designed, built and tested ML-1, a 500-kW gas-cooled microreactor that could be hauled around by truck and provide power in the field in less than a day and for over one effective full power year without refuelling. Of course, NBs are a world away from that technology.

Unlike large wind or solar farms, NBs can provide any desired amount of electricity and heat on site, eliminating the need for long-distance transmission and large centralised infrastructure. A single 10 MW NB can power some 7,000–8,000 homes, a shopping centre like Trincity or Gulf City malls, airport campuses larger than Piarco or a midsize data centre.

It could power a standard oil platform and produce enough desalinated fresh water for over 150,000 people. And all from a system small enough to fit within standard shipping containers.

To build a windfarm of 100 MW requires about 20,000 tonnes of steel, 50,000 tonnes of concrete as well as 900 tonnes of plastics used in the blades. Solar photovoltaic farms producing similar outputs require 50% more materials, though less steel than wind. In contrast, NBs generating 100 MW would require around 20 tonnes of low-enriched uranium, 1,600 tonnes of steel and 4,600 tonnes of concrete.

NBs use a fully standardised, mass-produced, factory-fuelled, simple design with few moving parts, combining a small nuclear reactor and a turbine to supply significant amounts of heat and/or power (on the order of 15–30 MWt or 5–10 MWe) from a very small footprint.

Because they are compact enough to fit in standard shipping containers, transport to the site of use and installation is quick and easy, with the battery made operational in a matter of weeks.   Embedded intelligence and established advanced monitoring systems enable semi-autonomous and remotely monitored operation, with inherent digital security. NBs use low-enriched uranium fuel, and can be safely shipped back to a centralised facility for refuelling and refurbishment at the end of the operation period. There is no need for the user to handle the refuelling.

We are at a juncture in history requiring us to make a fundamental shift, away from an electrical grid model that is the product of a century-long co-evolution of markets, fossil fuels, and centralised power production.

Combined with urbanisation, the result has been a highly interconnected system, requiring tight controls over electricity production fuels (coal, oil, natural gas, uranium) and their transport (pipeline, truck, rail) to large centralised power plants, lengthy power lines for distribution, and supply and voltage synchronisation to deliver energy to demand. At every step, harmful CO2 emissions are being added to the atmosphere. This must not be perpetuated as we move forward.

The recent addition of variable renewables has simply added further complications. While renewables play a role in decarbonising the grid, they contribute to vulnerabilities in systems that are already fragile and susceptible to external concerns, whether natural (eg, tropical storms, tornadoes, earthquakes) or caused by humans (eg, malicious cyber-attacks, anti-satellite, or kinetic attacks). By contrast, NBs are unobstructive and can be built into the landscape or even hidden within buildings and structures.

NB technology is at advanced development stage and can be ready for market by 2026-2027. Within the first few years of mass production, the cost of each NB would come down to US$20-US$50million.   T&T could be a global leader by adopting NB technology as a central part of its strategy to unlock the potential for a new and resilient energy-industrial model, transitioning out of its current oil and gas commodity dependency.

Rather than remain hostage to global oil price volatility, NBs could enable T&T greater control of its economic destiny, building a more sustainable and prosperous future.
As we look ahead, we imagine a future without polluting power stations burning fossil fuels.

A future without pylons and grids, where acres of countryside and essential farmland are not surrendered to metallic rows of solar panels. Imagine a future where we can “plug and play” clean energy, anywhere, whatever the business. Imagine a future of resilience to floods and extreme weather, where talk of “net zero” targets is a thing of the past. Well, imagine no more, because we don’t have time to waste. We must usher in the future, starting today.   So that Moruga may continue to provide us with pumpkins and peppers.

 

Nick O’Hara is the founder and director of Renovata, a UK and Caribbean-based social purpose consultancy. Jacopo Buongiorno is a professor of nuclear science and engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.