By Kimberly Ramkhalawan
February 25, 2022
Trinidad and Tobago’s Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley took to the 6th Summit of Gas Exporting Countries in Doha, Qatar this week to express his appreciation for Venezuelan co-operation in oil and gas exploration projects. The Prime Minister was one of the featured speakers at the event.
Making reference to the Trinidad and Tobago’s Manatee Cross-Border Field, which adjoins the Venezuelan Loran field, he publicly thanked the neighbouring government of Nicholas Maduro with “sincere appreciation for the cooperation in agreeing to the independent development of these cross-border fields.”
Dr Rowley says this deep-water project has an estimated gas reserve of 6.6tr cubic feet.
The comment came even as the TT Prime Minister attributed the pandemic for the further downfall of the country’s oil and gas sector. Speaking to the GECF nations gathered, a member state forum the Caribbean twin island republic has been subscribed to since, 2008, Dr Rowley says that pre-COVID-19, the domestic energy sector based on the Government’s strategies was enjoying a major upturn. However, the pandemic curtailed this momentum by delaying the implementation of new upstream projects. Issues brought on by the pandemic have been managed by the Government in collaboration with the upstream oil and gas sector, and the recovery is on track. As a consequence, several upstream initiatives, primarily gas projects, came on stream in 2021 and a number of others are in the pipeline for 2022.
Dr Rowley said in the medium to long term, several other gas projects are in the appraisal and sanctioning phases. He attributes a majority of contracts still based on the Henry Hub, the US marker-price, as being a disadvantage to Trinidad and Tobago. The Prime Minister issued a call on the GECF member states to assist in adjusting this price.
He added that while global gas and LNG markets have been undergoing structural changes, fluctuating between periods of convergence as well as divergence when oil prices are high. This volatility makes budgeting, for sovereigns, extremely difficult. The GECF Global Gas Model is a valuable tool which can assist member countries such as Trinidad and Tobago in navigating this price volatility.
Also in attendance was TT’s Energy Minister Stuart Young where he is said to have attended the Extraordinary Ministerial Meeting ahead of the summit. The other members of the delegation were Mrs Penelope Bradshaw-Niles, Acting Permanent Secretary, and the chair of the Executive Board of the GECF 2022; Mark Loquan, NGC President, and Selwyn Lashley, Strategic Energy Advisor to the energy minister.
Minister Young, in his statement to the Ministerial Meeting, emphasized the importance of natural gas in the energy transition. He also indicated that the GECF must chart the destiny of the use of natural gas as clean energy, and that the organization must play a critical role in the determination of the deployment of capital in energy. The use of natural gas in the reduction of harmful carbon emissions in the challenge of addressing climate change and global warming was also addressed.
The Extraordinary Ministerial Meeting was attended by Ministers from all 11 GECF Members (Algeria, Bolivia, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Iran, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Russia, Trinidad and Tobago and Venezuela) and ministers and representatives of eight Observer countries including Angola, Azerbaijan, Iraq, Malaysia, Mozambique, Norway, Peru and the United Arab Emirates.
The members of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum accounts for 71 percent of the world’s proven natural gas reserves, 43 percent of marketed production, 58 percent of LNG exports and 52 percent of pipeline trade.
Meanwhile, coming out of the Sixth Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF) which ended in Doha, Qatar was the resolution to make Natural Gas as the fuel of choice to satisfy the growing world energy needs.
This year’s Summit was themed “Championing Natural Gas for post-COVID-19 recovery and sustainable development
However, following this week’s meeting, member countries committed themselves to twelve resolutions within the Doha Declaration.
First is to ensure natural gas is an abundant, affordable, clean, and reliable source of energy, and as the fuel of choice to satisfy the growing world energy needs, and to address climate change and improve air quality.
The declaration also acknowledges the positive contributions of eco-friendly use of natural gas toward improving air quality and climate change mitigation and adaptation, in line with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Paris Agreement.
The Doha Declaration also promised to “strengthen natural gas’ environmental credentials, in particular through efforts to reduce gas flaring and methane emissions, and the development of eco-friendly technologies, including carbon capture, utilisation, and storage (CCUS).