The Ministry of Energy and Energy Industries has indicated that the Government of the
Republic of Trinidad and Tobago continues to utilise all resources at its disposal to attempt
to ascertain and locate those responsible for the oil spill in Tobago.
The Government has received information that the tug Solo Creed may have been
detained by authorities in Angola. The Solo Creed is a tug vessel which was allegedly towing
the vessel Gulfstream when it overturned, spilling significant volumes of hydrocarbons near
to the Tobago shoreline in February 2024. Effects of the spill reached as far as Bonaire.
After the incident, the vessel had not been located, until now. The Angolan Navy reported
that the Solo Creed was seized off the coast of the African nation’s capital city, Luanda, for
unauthorised breach of its claimed offshore oil security perimeter—an area operated by
subsidiaries of bp and TotalEnergies.
Minister of Energy Stuart Young has requested that official correspondence be sent via
the Ministry of Foreign and CARICOM Affairs and the Maritime Services Division of the
Ministry of Works and Transport to Angolan authorities to verify certain information that
has come to hand. The Trinidad and Tobago Coast Guard is also assisting in the exercise to
verify the location of the Solo Creed.
The Government is committed to continuing its pursuit of those responsible for the oil
spill in Tobago and will continue to keep the public informed of material developments.