The Honourable Stuart R. Young S.C., M.P, Acting Prime Minister of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, Minister of Energy and Energy Industries and Minister in the Office of the Prime Minister delivered the feature address at the International Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) Symposium which was hosted at the UWI Conference Centre, St. Augustine Campus on 6th September, 2024.
In sharing his perspective on the conference theme, ‘Towards a Net Zero Carbon Future with CCS; Synergizing Stakeholders, Milestones and the Way Forward,’ the Honourable Minister made a call for there to be a move from conversation to implementation due to the urgency of addressing climate change, within the context of Trinidad and Tobago’s hydrocarbon economy and its global exports.
Minister Young urged participants at the symposium to leverage the strength of the global conversations that he has been having with organizations such as the European Union (EU), where the negative financial effects of the EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) on smaller states such as Trinidad and Tobago were underscored by Minister Young.
Minister Young also guided the participants to also look at Trinidad and Tobago’s infrastructure as a competitive advantage as 95% our petrochemical plants are located strategically in a cluster at the Point Lisas Industrial Estate making it perfect for a partnership between the private sector and the government to build the CCS and then pipeline it.
In closing, Minister Young stated that “CCS is an important component in the continuation and the sustainability of our energy sector as we stay globallycompetitive.”
Also presenting at the international CCS symposium was Mrs. Penelope Bradshaw-Niles, Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Energy and Energy Industries who addressed the areas of policy and legislation for CCS.