PRESS RELEASE
The Energy Chamber of Trinidad & Tobago warmly welcomes today’s signing of agreements between bp, Shell, The National Gas Company of Trinidad and Tobago Limited (the Atlantic shareholders) and the Government of Trinidad & Tobago for the restructuring of the Atlantic LNG facility. This announcement that the parties have reached agreement on the commercial terms of the restructuring is a very important milestone to secure the future of the gas industry and therefore the overall economy of Trinidad & Tobago.
Clarity on the ownership and commercial structure of Atlantic and the pricing mechanisms for natural gas exported through the facility are vital for investor confidence. These agreements will assist companies in making investment decisions in new upstream exploration and development, which are also critical for the country’s petrochemical sector. The announced system to allow third-party gas suppliers a route to access the facility will also help spur upstream investment beyond the Atlantic shareholders.
The decision will also allow Atlantic to improve the efficiency of operations and make further investments to decrease the carbon intensity of their LNG.
Securing future gas supply, and a fair return for all stakeholders, is not just important for the upstream, midstream and downstream companies and the Government; it is also important for all of the service companies and contractors who service the industry and all of their employees.
These negotiations have been long and extremely complicated. As the Prime Minister made clear, they are historic and there have been no other examples where this sort of restructuring has taken place. The successful conclusion of these negotiations is testimony to the hard work and commitment of many people in the companies and within the Ministry of Energy and Energy Industries. The success of Trinidad & Tobago in the global gas industry has been based upon finding alignment and win-win outcomes between the Government and energy companies.
We look forward to the completion of the final legal agreements in early 2023.