1. Trinidad & Tobago
This special report has been produced by Elite Special Sections for distribution with Oil & Gas Journal
New investment and technology
revitalize an oil pioneer
Trinidad and Tobago still has vast petroleum potential,
despite more than a century as an oil producer. Oil and
gas explorers are taking a fresh look thanks in part to
government efforts to take the nation’s upstream and
downstream industries to new heights

2. Government determined to
create a globally competitive
fiscal regime for oil and gas
After a century as an oil producer,
Trinidad and Tobago could be
forgiven for choosing a quiet retirement
from the petroleum business. But the
small Caribbean nation of only 1.3 mil-
lion people is determined to carve out
an even bigger future in the upstream
and downstream sectors.
The country already punches above
its weight in the world’s petroleum busi-
ness. It ranks among the world’s top
20 gas producers, with an output of
40.7 billion cubic
metres in 2011.
BP produces
more than half of
this gas and is the
largest petroleum
producer in the
country, where
it has operated
since the 1960s.
Most of the country’s gas produc-
tion is processed into 15 million tonnes
of LNG every year by Atlantic LNG at
the Port Fortin facility. Large volumes
are also taken by US-based Methanex,
which operates the world’s biggest
methanol and ammonia plants at Points
Lisas Estate.
Oil production is a smaller part of
the country’s petroleum economy, total-
ing 136,000 barrels of oil per day across
hundreds of wells onshore and offshore.
Production has declined by about 30%
since 2007, but this reflects chronic
under-investment rather than any dry-
ing up of the country’s oil opportunities.
Trinidad and Tobago is part of the
Eastern Venezuelan Basin, which is
widely regarded as one of the oiliest
places in the world. The country has
already produced 3.5 billion barrels of
oil, but this represents only 20% of the
discovered reserves of 16 billon bar-
rels. The leading geological expert on
the region, Dr Krishna Persad, believes
another 16 billion barrels of oil are still
waiting to be discovered, along with an-
other 50 TcF of gas.
Trinidad and Tobago’s coalition
government of Prime Minister Kamla
Persad-Bissessar, which came to power
in 2010, is determined to attract new
investment to realise some of this po-
tential. It has a long-term vision for the
country’s petroleum industry, but there
are also pressing issues that require swift
and effective action.
The most urgent priority is a turna-
round of the decline in oil production.
The petroleum sector provides about
60% of public revenues, and the recent
decline in oil production is eroding this
critical revenue base. The country’s fi-
nances remain in a very strong position,
thanks to conservative management of
many years of petroleum wealth. Trini-
dad and Tobago had more than $US10
billion in foreign exchange reserves at
Tax changes and new
programs revitalize
petroleum sector
“Human resources, a rich natural
endowment of oil and gas and low
production costs, make Trinidad and
Tobago one of the most attractive
places in the world to explore”
Mr. Larry Howai
Minister of Finance and the Economy
Sector revitalization
Petrotrin
Offshore
Onshore
NGC
Downstream
First Citizen’s
Servicing
Infrastructure
Summary
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CONTENTS
All production and editing was done by
www.elitespecialsections.com
Project Director: Nathalie Martin-Bea
Writing: David Upton
Design Layout: Antonio Caparrós
Photos courtesy of: Petrotrin, NGC, NEC,
PLIPDECO, TOFCO, BP, Methanex and
Oscar Segura
Published April 2013 in OilGas Journal
Special Thanks to:
Minister of Finance Senator Larry Howai,
Minister of Energy and Energy Affairs
Senator Kevin Ramnarine, Minister of
Transport Mr. Chandresh Sharma, The
Energy Chamber of Trinidad and Tobago
and its CEO, Dr. Thackwray ‘Dax’ Driver
and the Communication Departments of
Petrotrin, NGC, NEC and PLIPDECO
The staff of OGJ and Daniel Bernard for
their help and support
the end of 2012, and a sovereign wealth
fund (the Heritage and Stabilization
Fund) with a further $US4.5 billion.
But government receipts from oil
production have tracked downwards for
almost a decade and the government is
acutely aware it needs to act to avoid a
permanent shift to a lower revenue base.
Another key priority is finding more
gas to feed the huge appetite of Atlantic
LNG and the 90 downstream companies
at Port Lisas Estate. The government’s
2012 audit of gas reserves, conduct-
ed by consultants Ryder Scott, shows
proved gas reserves of 13.3 Tcf at the
end of 2011. While this is a decrease of
only 0.2 TcF or less than 2% from the
previous year, it is part of an unbroken
downward trend from a peak of 20.8 Tcf
in 2002.
BP’s latest Statistical Review puts a
figure of 14.2 TcF on the country’s prov-
en gas reserves, slightly higher than the
Ryder Scott figure. However, BP’s review
also points out that proven reserves will
last for only 9.9 years at current rates of
production.
The outlook for oil reserves is less
worrying, but is helped by the fact that
falling production is placing less stress
on the existing resources. BP’s Statistical
Review estimates total proved oil re-
serves of 800 million barrels at the end
of 2011, which will support another 16
years of production at current rates .
The task of reversing the oil produc-
tion decline and rebuilding gas reserves
is led by Minister of Energy and Energy
Affairs, Kevin Ramnarine, who was just
39 years of age when appointed to the
role in 2011. He is possibly the young-
est energy minister in the world, but his
background as a petroleum engineer
and experience as an economist with
BG in Trinidad and Tobago also make
him perhaps the best qualified.
Ramnarine is under no illusions
about the changing competitive envi-
ronment for petroleum investment.
“The world 20 years ago was
very different to today. Trinidad and
Tobago was a very sought-after destina-
tion for E P in-
vestment, but now
we have to compete
with new players,
such as Ghana, Mo-
zambique, Tanza-
nia, Colombia and
of course Brazil.
Therefore we have
to constantly reassess our fiscal system
to ensure we are competitive.”
Ramnarine says a number of im-
provements have already been made
over the past three years. The most
significant changes were in last year’s
national budget, and included the in-
“We have to constantly reassess
our fiscal system to ensure we are
competitive”
Mr. Kevin Ramnarine
Minister of Energy and Energy Affairs
Gulf of Paria in La Brea

3. troduction of special supplemental
petroleum (SPT) tax rate for new field
developments to encourage the devel-
opment of smaller pools of oil and gas
with marginal economics.
Ramnarine says the country still has
work to do. “Cabinet has just appointed
a committee to consult with all stake-
holders in the energy sector and has
terms of reference that include heavy
oil development and reform of produc-
tion sharing contracts. The committee
will report in six months, and I am
hoping to take up some of the recom-
mendations in this year’s budget.”
President of the Energy Chamber,
Roger Packer, says Trinidad and
Tobago has some challenges and even
more needs to be done to encourage
exploration and investment in gas. “We
need to incentivise the E P companies
because when you are drilling offshore
you need deep pockets. There are
many smaller gas reserves out there
that are not economic, but with the
right tax incentives it will be possible
to develop these fields and turnaround
the decline in reserves.”
The government’s determination to
revitalize the petroleum sector has other
dimensions than protecting public
finances. Oil and gas has dominated the
country’s affairs for several generations,
and the industry is a way of life for
the people of Trinidad and Tobago.
The country’s schools and universities,
which are free for all citizens right up
to the level of PhD study, are geared for
training people to work in oil and gas.
Minister of Finance and the Econo-
my, Larry Howai, says the country’s hu-
man resources, combined with a rich
natural endowment of oil and gas and
low production costs, make Trinidad
and Tobago one of the most attractive
places in the world to explore.
“In terms of human resources, we
have one of the highest literacy rates
in the region, and we have a very high
level of tertiary level graduates. We
have a high level of intellectual capital
floating around in Trinidad and Tobago,
as well as a low cost of operations and an
attractive fiscal regime. All these things
contribute to attracting large investors,
and explain why such a small country is
globally significant in terms of exports
of LNG and ammonia.”
Ramnarine says improvements to the
country’s fiscal regime is already leading
Tax changes so far …
• A cut in the SPT rate for pre-1988 offshore areas from 42% to 33%,
bringing it into line with rate for post-1988 areas, and the introduction of
allowances for operators of small and/or mature fields
• The introduction of special SPT rate of 25% for new field developments
• A cut in the petroleum profits tax from 50% to 35% for offshore fields in
water depths of at least 400 metres
• An increase in the cost recovery to 80% for operators of deepwater fields
• The introduction of a 140% capital uplift for exploration in deep
horizons, defined as 8000 feet or more on land and 12,000 feet or more
in marines areas
Energy Map of Trinidad and Tobago May 2012. Source: Ministry of Energy and Energy Affairs
www.petrotrin.com
Petroleum Company of Trinidad and Tobago Limited (Petrotrin),
the integrated, national oil and gas company of Trinidad
and Tobago, has a rich and diverse history of operations,
incorporating Exploration and Production and Refining and
Marketing operations that are more than a century old.
The company has within its portfolio a large complement of
legacy assets and plants initially developed and installed by a
variety of major multinationals as well as several new plants
and projects that it has deployed in its thrust to retain its
competitive advantage.
In 2013 January, the company celebrated its twentieth (20th)
anniversary of incorporation as Petrotrin, and continues in its
pursuit to deliver superior results through safe and responsible
operations in the areas of Exploration and Production and
Refining and Marketing.
Petrotrin continues to be an attractive investment destination for
parties seeking business opportunities in the following areas:
≥ Onshore and offshore exploration and production
≥ Refinery upgrade
≥ Environmental management
ENERGY BASED,
PEOPLE POWERED

4. to a pick up in exploration activity, as
well as some exciting new discoveries.
“One of the best proxies for the sec-
tor is the number of rig days, which
increased by 27% to 2,788 in 2012
compared to the previous year. That’s
the highest count since 2007. While it
is difficult to accurately forecast rig ac-
tivity, we expect it to top 3,000 days in
2013 as exploration activity accelerates.
That activity translated into three dis-
coveries in 2012- Petrotrin in Cluster 6,
Bayfield in East Galeota and BP in the
Savonette field.”
The biggest of the three discoveries
is BP’s Savonette-4 well, which added 1
TcF of gas reserves to its Savonette field
in shallow water in the Columbus Basin.
The discovery is BP’s largest in Trinidad
and Tobago in seven years and is an
early reward for a significantly increased
exploration program.
A bigger future in gas
The shale gas revolution in the US has
sent shockwaves through the global
gas industry. Atlantic LNG was origi-
nally cast as one of the losers because
about 80% of its cargoes went to the US,
which no longer needs to import gas.
However, Atlantic LNG has been adept
at switching to new customers in Latin
America, Europe, Japan, China and Tai-
wan. US customers now account for only
20% of sales. The company, owned by BP,
BG, Shell (which recently bought Rep-
sol’s interest), the government- owned
National Gas Company and a subsidi-
ary of the Chinese Investment Corpora-
tion, is still producing at capacity and is
achieving better prices than gas sold in
the US at Henry Hub-linked prices.
Atlantic LNG’s competitive position is
helped by the fact that its four trains were
built long before the global blow-out in
LNG constructions costs. The first train
was commissioned in 1999.
The high-price LNG markets in Asia
will become more accessible next year
with the completion of the Panama Ca-
nal expansion. Closer to home, Panama
and Costa Rica are both preparing to
build re-gasification terminals as part of
a switch from oil and diesel to LNG for
power generation.
Atlantic LNG Chief Executive Nigel
Darlow says he sees a very bright future
for the company, despite the
massive amount of new ca-
pacity under construction
around the world and the
likelihood of LNG exports
from the US.
“If you speak to most
industry experts, the consensus view is
global demand for LNG will outstrip sup-
ply over the next 10 to 15 years. There
will always be a market for Atlantic LNG.
Last year, the world produced 247 mil-
lion tonnes of LNG. The view is that by
2025 the world will need to produce 425
million tonnes of LNG. That assumes the
existing base will still be there, but some
of that is in decline, so you will need to
double the LNG supply over the next
10 years. That’s a huge challenge for the
world, even with Australia, the US and
new projects in East Africa.”
Energy Minister Ramnarine says the
world is undergoing a “huge transition”
towards gas in which Trinidad will play
a major role. “We are still the sixth larg-
est exporter of LNG in the world, which
is a great achievement for a country with
relatively small gas reserves and a popu-
lation of only 1.3 million people. this
country will continue to play a major
role in gas over the next 30 years, and
the a lot of new reserves will come from
exploration taking place right now in our
shallow water and average depth water.”
Key strategies
The improved fiscal regime is only one
of a number of government strategies to
kick-start the revival of the country’s pe-
troleum sector.
The national oil company Petrotrin
has been given a new mandate to boost
production from its existing assets and
invest heavily in exploration.
Petrotrin’s petroleum sharing con-
tracts over the so-called Trinmar leases
off the west coast were recently renewed
with the Energy Ministry. Petrotrin has
committed to invest $US300 million,
which includes reactivation of 60 wells
capped more than 10 years ago in South
West Soldado field. This activity accel-
erated last month with the arrival of a
second workover rig. Petrotrin will also
conduct a 3D seismic survey and drill up
to six exploration wells.
The Energy Ministry also signed a
new licence with Trinity Exploration and
Production for the Point Ligoure, Bright-
on Marine and Guapo blocks, known as
the PGB acreage. Trinity is the largest in-
dependent based in Trinidad and is rid-
ing the resurgence in the country’s petro-
leum industry.
Further off the east coast, the govern-
ment has just completed its most suc-
cessful release of deepwater acreage in 14
years. BHP Billiton, which is the country’s
largest oil producer, picked up all four
permits to be awarded with a commit-
ment to spend a total of $US565 million.
At the other end of the spectrum,
new opportunities are being created for
small operators with last month’s launch
of first onshore acreage release since the
late 1990s. Ramnarine says the onshore
release is a key component of the govern-
ment’s strategy to turn around the decline
in oil production.
Pipeline construction
“The consensus view is global demand for LNG
will outstrip supply over the next 10 to 15 years.
There will always be a market for Atlantic LNG”
Mr Nigel Darlow, Atlantic LNG CEO

5. Petrotrin is Trinidad and Tobago’s integrated
national oil company with operations in both
the upstream exploration and production (EP)
sector and downstream petroleum refining sector
President Khalid Hassanali makes
the point that while the company’s
revenue comes from sales of refined
products, the production of every barrel
of crude contributes to the company’s
refinery margin.
“At Petrotrin we live on the refinery
margin. That’s what we look at every
day, and right now
the margins are
healthy.”
Petrotrin’s solid
position is in sharp
contrast to other
refineries in the
Caribbean. In Jan-
uary 2012, Hovensa, a joint venture be-
tween Hess and Venezuela’s national oil
company, closed its refinery at St Croix
on the US Virgin Islands.
With a capacity of 500,000 barrels
of oil per day (bopd), the Hovensa re-
finery was among the 10 largest in the
world, yet it still chalked up losses of
$US1.3 billion over the previous three
years. Valero Energy later announced
it would close its 235,000 bopd Aruba
refinery, also because of poor margins.
Hassanali says Petrotrin has a num-
ber of competitive advantages over
other refiners in the region. “We are in
a better position than the merchant re-
finers because about 40% of the crude
we process is from our own production.
That helps our margin.”
Petrotrin is pursuing a multi-pronged
strategy to improve the margin of its re-
fining business. At the top of the list is
boosting the volume of oil from its own
fields for processing through the com-
pany’s 175,000 bopd nameplate capacity
refinery at Pointe-a-Pierre.
This strategy is aligned to the nation-
al mandate articulated by the Govern-
ment of Trinidad and Tobago to increase
domestic crude production in an effort
to further bolster the country’s economy.
Petrotrin is already the country’s
largest oil producer, with an output of
about 43,000 barrels per day represent-
ing approximately 50% of national pro-
duction.Hassanali indicated that in the
past year Petrotrin has been successful
in stabilizing oil production levels after
a period of decline.
“We are now embarking on a number
of exciting programs. Some are already
producing results. I am very confident
we will see an increase in the short term,
with much larger gains as new explora-
tion and production initiatives are imple-
mented.” The quickest wins are coming
from a new focus on the productivity of
Petrotrin’s offshore properties in the Gulf
Petrotrin, creating a secure future
“We are in a better position than
the merchant refiners because
about 40% of the crude we process
is from our own production”
Mr. Khalid Hassanali
Petrotrin President
of Paria, which produces a total of about
22,000 bopd. Chemical treatments to de-
wax flowlines from offshore fields result-
ed in an immediate production increase
of more than 600 barrels of oil per day.
In the Southwest Soldado offshore
area, Petrotrin is making an initial invest-
ment in reactivating 40 of 60 wells that
had been drilled over the past decade
but which remained inactive as a result
of of sub – optimal facilities availability.
The organization is also planning to drill
up to 20 new wells over the next year,
including 18 development wells and
2 exploration wells in the Soldado acre-
age. Production wells will be connected
to a Floating Production Storage and
Offtake (FPSO) vessel.
Hassanali is particularly excited
about the recent Jubilee discovery in
the Cluster 6 area. Jubilee is a moderate
sized new field with initially estimated
volumetric reserves of 48 million barrels
of oil, but its real significance lies in the
discovery of light oil below a reservoir
of heavy oil that is typical of the area.
This creates the possibility of blending
to dramatically improve the production
rates of Petrotrin’s heavy offshore crudes.
Hassanali says that the company is
focused on boosting production in the
shortest possible time and there is a new
urgency in exploration and production
activities. “For example, one of our dis-
covery wells from the 2011-12 drilling
program was tied back to the onshore
infrastructure as a producer within a
matter of months.
“We are also changing our focus on
productivity in the offshore leases. Our
people would head out and return each
day, which left only a few hours of op-
erating time. We are now building off-
shore accommodation on a number of
our platforms with a view to operating
on an offshore shift basis so we can pro-
gress our plans more efficiently.”
Onshore, Petrotrin is also pursuing
production gains from existing fields, but
the company’s primary focus is on ex-
ploration for larger and more productive
structures. In 2011, the company con-
ducted the most comprehensive onshore
3D seismic survey undertaken in Trini-
dad and Tobago, on a 312-square kilo-
meter area on the South West Peninsula.
Seismic data processing was completed
recently, with interpretation in progress,
which will be used as the basis of a new
exploration drilling campaign in 2013.
Hassanali says the company’s geoscien-
tists working on interpretation of the
seismic data are optimistic about the po-
tential for new onshore discoveries.
Petrotrin has a number of other strat-
egies for boosting onshore production
that will progressively deliver higher
volumes. In the shorter term, the com-
pany is taking a more vigorous approach
to managing its joint ventures. Petrotrin
is also working with the Government on
opening up new onshore acreage to at-
tract exploration investment from inter-
national companies.
Improving oil production is only one
of the levers available to Petrotrin in its
quest to improve refinery margins. Has-
sanali says other strategies for improving
the company’s bottom line are increased
sales of higher-valued, refined products
and better management of costs.
“We have just completed a very major
upgrade of our refinery which we call the
Gasoline Optimization Programme. This
includes an upgraded catalytic cracker
and the addition of other key units,
which allow us to produce finished,
higher-valued products of a quality to
meet stringent market specifications.
“We are also near completion of an
Ultra Low Sulphur Diesel plant that
will produce diesel fuels that meet the
most strict specifications in Europe and
other international markets. We are
actively pursuing these new markets
and opportunities to move even further
down the refined products value chain,”
Hassanali says.
Over the next four years, Petrotrin
will invest a total of US$2 billion in
initiatives to boost its production and
business performance. It is a large sum,
but the risks are spread and there is a
huge potential payback for Petrotrin, as
well as Trinidad and Tobago.
Petrotrin is also taking a lead role
in reducing carbon dioxide emis-
sions with a new project that will
capture gas normally vented into the
atmosphere from onshore oil wells.
This project is aligned with the
United Nations Clean Development
Mechanism (CDM) initiative, a project
which will help to reduce the coun-
try’s overall greenhouse gas emissions.
The recovered gas will be processed
and sold to customers.
By registering the project as Trinidad
and Tobago’s first CDM, Petrotrin will
be able to generate internationally
recognized carbon credits. Proceeds
fromthesaleofcreditsonglobalmarkets
will be used to subsidize the cost of
gas collection. The project is expected
to reduce greenhouse gas emissions
by the order of 400,000 metric tonnes
of Carbon Dioxide annually, which is
equivalent to the removal of about
80,000 cars from the country’s roads.
Hassanali says the project reduces
the country’s carbon footprint and
improves energy resource use and
sustainability.
“It is also bringing new technology
to the local energy sector and
generating a significant number of
employment opportunities. We are
very proud to be this project’s sponsor,
owner and developer.”
Courtesy of Petrotrin

6. Trinidad and Tobago’s offshore petroleum
areas offer an exciting mix of opportunities
In shallow waters off the east coast,
the 50-year-old Galeota Block is
a classic example of the opportuni-
ties available to new entrants who are
prepared to bring investment and mod-
ern technology.
The heart of the block is the Trintes
field, which has produced 28 million
barrels of oil since coming on stream
in 1972. Four platforms have been
installed over the life of field and oil
produced from a total of 62 wells. In
2009, Petrotrin awarded a 65% interest
in the block to Bayfield Energy, a
company formed a year earlier by local
petroleum industry executives who
had seen the potential for redeveloping
Galeota. AIM-listed Bayfield took over
the operator role from Petrotrin, which
retained a 35% interest.
Since the end of 2010, Bayfield has
carried out almost 66 work-overs and
drilled 14 sidetrack wells at Trintes, using
longer reach drill technology than previ-
ously available. Production had almost
doubled to 2,040 barrels of oil per day by
mid-2012. A continuing platform-based
drilling program is expected to increase
production to over 4,000 bopd by the end
of 2013 and almost 8,000 bopd in 2016.
Bayfield ran out of cash in late 2012,
but its work program for Galeota is con-
tinuing following a
takeover by locally
headquartered in-
dependent, Trinity
Exploration and
Production. The
takeover was con-
cluded earlier this
year and included
a $US90 million
capital raising to
fund an aggressive
work program over
2013 and 2014.
Elsewhere in
the block, Bayfield
conducted a 3D
seismic survey and
acquired 200 km
of 2D data to sup-
port further explo-
ration and apprais-
al of a number of
discoveries made
in the 1980s. The
first of its explora-
tion wells, EG8,
made a significant
oil and gas discov-
ery in March 2012. The newly enlarged
company plans to drill three exploration
wells from the existing platforms. An-
other two wells will be drilled in part-
nership with Repsol to appraise the E8
discovery, which extends into Repsol’s
neighbouring licence.
Deepwater frontier
Galeota is one of many old fields in the
shallow waters of Trinidad and Tobago
that are ripe for redevelopment. The
fields are low to medium risk in terms
of exploration difficulty, and field sizes
of up to 50 million barrels are common.
Further off the east coast towards
the Atlantic, a new deepwater frontier
is finally attracting strong interest from
international oil companies. The region
is very lightly explored, but has the
promise of some two billion barrels of
oil, according to local expert Dr Krishna
Persad. The government’s own estimates
place potential for up to 24 TcF of gas
and 4.2 billion barrels of oil.
The Energy Ministry has encouraged
exploration in this deepwater frontier
for over a decade, but until recently
had managed to award only two blocks
to BP. In the latest round in 2012, the
government finally ‘cracked the code’
according to Ramnarine, and will offer
another new round in April 2013.
Bids for the 2012 blocks were
received from a who’s who of interna-
tional oil companies, but BHP Billiton
made a clean sweep, picking up all
four blocks to be awarded. The diver-
sified Australian resources giant, which
boosted its petroleum arm in 2011 with
$US20 billion of US shale gas acquisi-
tions, has committed to spend $US565
million in Trinidad’s deepwater Atlantic
province. This includes 5,330 square
Offshore beckons with
promise of old and new
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kilometers of 3D seismic and six deep-
water exploration wells.
BHP Billiton began exploring in
Trinidad and Tobago in 1996 and
made its first discovery in 1999. Oil
production began in 2005 from the
Angostura project, with gas production
following in 2011. Country Manager
Vincent Pereira says the deepwater
acreage win is very significant for the
company. “We are very excited by this
opportunity. We have a very significant
deepwater business in the Gulf of
Mexico and we will be bringing that
capability to Trinidad and Tobago.”
BP secured a 100% interest in two
deepwater blocks in July 2011 and
has quickly advanced its exploration
program. The company has conducted
ocean bottom cable seismic in its
deepwater permits in what is a
technological first for exploration in
the country.
The Savonette platform operated by BP
NEC tugboats at the port of Pointe-à-Pierre
“We are very excited
by this opportunity.
We have a very
significant deepwater
business in the Gulf
of Mexico and we
will be bringing that
capability to Trinidad
and Tobago”
Mr. Vincent
Pereira,
BHP Billiton
Country Manager

7. New drilling technologies and 3D seismic are
making onshore oil exploration more rewarding
and attracting overseas players
Offshore has dominated Trinidad
and Tobago’s modern era of pe-
troleum activity, but the once-prolific on-
shore areas are coming back into focus
after decades of decline.
The country’s onshore oil fields date
back more than a century and tradition-
ally have been reluctant producers, with
enhanced oil recovery techniques used as
far back as the 1950s to boost produc-
tion rates measured in the 10s of barrels
per day. The Energy Ministry has made
boosting onshore investment a key prior-
ity because it offers one of the best hopes
in the short term of reversing the national
decline in oil production. Onshore fields
still produce about 14,000 barrels of oil
per day, and have potential for signifi-
cantly increased output.
Minister Kevin Ramnarine says the
onshore fiscal regime is now much
more competitive and this has led to
a renaissance of drilling activity. “We
expect 19 wells onshore in 2013,
which is the most exploration wells in
more than a decade.”
The surge in activity is led by Trinity
Exploration and Production. The home-
grown petroleum explorer and producer
plans to drill 12 exploration wells in
2013, aimed at adding to its onshore 2P
reserves of 2.1 million barrels. Onshore
production is currently about 2,000 bar-
rels per day, including 1,320 barrels per
day from the WD-5/6 field.
The attractive economics of onshore
oil were highlighted in the recent of-
fer document for Trinity’s $US90 mil-
lion capital raising. Consultants to the
Onshore revival set to
boost oil output
company estimated a cost of between
US$0.6 million and US$1 million for
each well, with production expected in
the range of 26 to 57 barrels per day.
The profit potential has also caught
the attention of overseas companies,
with AIM-listed Leni Gas and Oil of the
UK boosting its presence and ASX-listed
Range Resources of Australia entering the
country’s onshore sector in the past year.
Leni Chief Executive Officer, Neil Rit-
son, says Trinidad is an attractive propo-
sition for the company and his aim is to
achieve production of 5,000 barrels of
oil per day in the next five years. “Trini-
dad is an exact fit with our corporate
strategy of onshore oil
in existing fields which
can be redeveloped given
the current oil price sce-
nario and with new tech-
nologies.Thereisawealth
of opportunity here.”
Leni acquired its first field
in 2008 and substantially
increased its footprint
in 2012. To date, the focus has been on
workovers, but new wells will be drilled
in 2013 using newer technology such as
coil tube drilling to reduce costs.
“We are also looking at bringing some
sand control technologies using modern
polymers that have never been used
here. And even in the more mundane
areas of water treatment, we have access
to some new technologies in the US that
will allow us to operate more efficiently.”
The biggest news in the onshore sec-
tor is the release last month of three
new blocks in the first onshore bid
round since the late 1990s.
The government is offering three
blocks over a total of 150,000 acres
in the Southern Trinidad Basin. The
area has not been subject to major
exploration campaigns, but lies within
a petroleum fairway that includes the
Penal/Barrackpore field, which has
produced in excess of 150 million
barrels to date. Bidding for the onshore
areas closes on 14 June.
“Trinidad is an exact fit with our corporate
strategy of onshore oil in existing
fields which can be redeveloped given
the current oil price scenario and with
new technologies. There is a wealth of
opportunity here”
Mr. Neil Ritson, Leni Chief Executive Officer
Altech Rig-1 at Goudron field

8. Services required for your offshore rig
vessel?
• JSL’s management team has over 40 years’ contract
labour experience in the oil and gas industry
• JSL’s database comprises over 1,000 resumes of
extremely qualified personnel
• We have also maintained good business relationships
with all trade unions in Trinidad Tobago
Have you recently been awarded a contract
in Trinidad?
• Manpower consultancy and entry strategy for Trinindad
• Business registration and set-up
• VAT and tax registrations
• Real estate services and vehicle rentals
• Work permit and immigration services
• Payroll and taxation services
• Family relocations
• Office furniture
• Customs and brokerage
• Industrial and domestic transportation
ONE POINT OF CONTACT FOR ALL YOUR
SERVICE REQUIREMENTS
Does your company have an intransit rig or
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CARIDOCS COMPOUND Caribbean Dockyard Complex, Western Main Road, Port Chaguaramas, Trinidad, WI. (868) 221-8040
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HOUSTON 11757 Katy Freeway Ste 900, Houston, TX7707 (281) 463-2219 houston@jslinternational.net
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JSL observes the highest standards of safety and quality with a 100% accident-free
environment and a company record of zero non-productive hours
JSL was the first labour contractor and catering provider in Trinidad and Tobago to
achieve STOW recognition
Impeccable management team and leadership with over 90 years’ combined
experience and expertise within the oil and gas industry both locally and
internationally
JSL has pooled and maintained highly skilled and experienced drilling and catering
labour force with years of offshore experience
JSL serves as the interface between the client and the governing trade union in
Trinidad and Tobago
JSL is a premium service provider; pooling the best group of companies and
resources for any assigned job
One single point of contact for all our customers
Please visit our website at www.jslinternational.net
Tired and frustrated of high prices and lack of
variety for catered meals?
• JSL’s catering team has over 30 years’ experience in the
onshore and offshore industry
• Our pricing model is based on a per man per day approach
which is subsequently cheaper than providing manpower and
provisions separately
• JSL also provides provisions for onshore and offshore installations
ONSHORE AND OFFSHORE CATERINGMANPOWER SERVICES
EXPERTISE IN LOCAL MARKET INTRANSIT RIG AND VESSELS
Venezuela
Canada
Houston
Gulf of Mexico
Nicaragua
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French Guyana
Guyana
Peru
Brazil
Argentina
Operating Locations
Prospective Locations
Colombia
Suriname
Services required for your offshore rig
vessel?
• JSL’s management team has over 40 years’ contract
labour experience in the oil and gas industry
• JSL’s database comprises over 1,000 resumes of
extremely qualified personnel
• We have also maintained good business relationships
with all trade unions in Trinidad Tobago
Have you recently been awarded a contract
in Trinidad?
• Manpower consultancy and entry strategy for Trinindad
• Business registration and set-up
• VAT and tax registrations
• Real estate services and vehicle rentals
• Work permit and immigration services
• Payroll and taxation services
• Family relocations
• Office furniture
• Customs and brokerage
• Industrial and domestic transportation
ONE POINT OF CONTACT FOR ALL YOUR
SERVICE REQUIREMENTS
Does your company have an intransit rig or
vessel coming through Trinidad?
• Advice on the location offshore and port of entry
• Customs and immigration clearances
• Port health inspections
• Crew changes
• Refueling
• Loading cargo and provisions
TOTAL PROJECT SUPPORT, SAFETY, COST
EFFECTIVENESS AND LIMITED DOWNTIME
www.jslinternational.net
TRINIDAD 69 Dundonald Street, Port of Spain, Trinidad, West Indies. (868) 298-2525 trinidad@jslinternational.net
TRINIDAD 40-44 Sutton Street, San Fernando, Trinidad, West Indies. (868) 298-2443 trinidad@jslinternational.net
CARIDOCS COMPOUND Caribbean Dockyard Complex, Western Main Road, Port Chaguaramas, Trinidad, WI. (868) 221-8040
LA BREA INDUSTRIAL ESTATE Lot 5 Labidco Industrial Estate, La Brea
HOUSTON 11757 Katy Freeway Ste 900, Houston, TX7707 (281) 463-2219 houston@jslinternational.net
Why Choose JSL International?
JSL observes the highest standards of safety and quality with a 100% accident-free
environment and a company record of zero non-productive hours
JSL was the first labour contractor and catering provider in Trinidad and Tobago to
achieve STOW recognition
Impeccable management team and leadership with over 90 years’ combined
experience and expertise within the oil and gas industry both locally and
internationally
JSL has pooled and maintained highly skilled and experienced drilling and catering
labour force with years of offshore experience
JSL serves as the interface between the client and the governing trade union in
Trinidad and Tobago
JSL is a premium service provider; pooling the best group of companies and
resources for any assigned job
One single point of contact for all our customers
Please visit our website at www.jslinternational.net
Tired and frustrated of high prices and lack of
variety for catered meals?
• JSL’s catering team has over 30 years’ experience in the
onshore and offshore industry
• Our pricing model is based on a per man per day approach
which is subsequently cheaper than providing manpower and
provisions separately
• JSL also provides provisions for onshore and offshore installations
ONSHORE AND OFFSHORE CATERINGMANPOWER SERVICES
EXPERTISE IN LOCAL MARKET INTRANSIT RIG AND VESSELS
Venezuela
Canada
Houston
Gulf of Mexico
Nicaragua
Barbados
Trinidad Tobago
French Guyana
Guyana
Peru
Brazil
Argentina
Operating Locations
Prospective Locations
Colombia
Suriname

9. The Trinidad model helped NGC become
the most valuable company in the region,
but changes are afoot
The fruits of the famous “Trinidad
and Tobago model” are easy to
see on the short drive north from San
Fernando to the capital of Port of Spain.
A few minutes out of San Fernando are
views along the coast of the Point Lisas
Industrial Estate, a hub of more than
90 downstream petroleum companies
that would be the envy of much larger
nations. The estate includes the world’s
largest methanol and ammonia plants
and a host of industries that convert the
country’s abundant supply of natural gas
into value-added commodities.
The “Trinidad and Tobago model”
is shorthand for a number of strategic
plans developed by government in the
1960s to create value from the massive
volumes of gas flared or vented from
offshore oil rigs. The gas was an inevi-
table by-product of many of the coun-
try’s oil fields, but had no market. The
world of LNG, which could have taken
Trinidad’s gas to export markets, was
still at an embryonic stage.
The National Gas Company (NGC)
was formed as a 100% state-owned
company in 1975 to take surplus gas
and build infrastructure to compress
and distribute it to industrial users.
Today, NGC is the most valuable com-
pany in the Caribbean, with assets of
$US6 billion. It owns 1,000 kilometers
of pipelines, including a new line to
Tobago, and can transport 4.4 billion
cubic feet of gas per day.
The Points Lisas Industrial Estate
was one of the first pillars in the Trini-
dad model. It was established in 1966
under the manage-
ment of the Port Li-
sas Industrial Estate
Corporation (PLIP-
DECO). Raw gas
is treated by Phoe-
nix Park Gas Pro-
cessors (PPGPL),
which operates one
of the largest gas
processing plants
in the Americas
at Port Lisas. PP-
GPL is owned by
NGC (51%), Cono-
coPhillips (39%) and Pan West Engi-
neers (10%). NGC also has minority in-
terests in trains 1 and 4 of Atlantic LNG.
While the Trinidad model has been a
huge success, there are critical challeng-
es ahead that will change the funda-
mentals of doing business for NGC and
for the country’s downstream industry.
The biggest challenge is gas price.
NGC has had a monopoly on the sup-
ply and price of gas. It has used this
power to achieve a balance between
fostering the development of indus-
try and making cash surpluses for its
government shareholder. But the de-
cades-old pricing mechanism, which is
linked to global steel and petrochemi-
cal prices, has been challenged by the
increasingly global nature of the gas in-
dustry and the decline in prices caused
by the US shale revolution. Gas buy-
ers in Point Lisas Estate are demanding
lower prices, while the country’s largest
producers are making no secret of their
desire for higher prices to help support
new exploration and development.
Trinidad and Tobago’s biggest gas
producer, bpTT, sells 40% of all its gas
NGC evolves with markets and
prepares to head overseas
Point Lisas Industrial Estate
to NGC and is at the forefront of calls
for a renegotiation of gas sales contracts
with the government distributor. bpTT
Chairman, Norman Christie, says there
is an urgent need to renegotiate with
NGC. “It’s a conversation we can’t avoid
because the gas world has changed,
and it has changed dramatically .... we
would be very sorry to see if we end up
in a circumstance where NGC is nego-
tiating contracts for sale of gas without
considering the implications for the
suppliers of that gas.”
Energy Minister Ramnarine agrees
the relevance of the NGC monopoly
model should be examined in the in-
creasingly global gas market, and says
there have already been some “hybrid”
contracts giving gas buyers a more direct
relationship with upstream suppliers.
The Minister also says the current
model will no longer ensure NGC’s
growth. In a speech to the country’s an-
nual Energy Conference in Port of Spain
in January, Ramnarine said “the exist-
ing NGC business model, which has
worked well, will however not provide
the accelerated growth that is desired.
The question now for the NGC becomes
one of capital efficiency and growth.”
“The time has come for the NGC
to consider the forward and backward
vertical integration of its business and
seek investment opportunities outside
of this country. I can tell you NGC
is currently in discussion with three
multi-national companies in Trinidad
and Tobago for the acquisition of their
all or part of their assets and it is also
examining investment opportunities in
Africa. The vision therefore is that the
NGC is the vehicle for growth through
which this country can expand its foot-
print at home and abroad. In years to
come we envision the NGC becoming
to our country what Petrobras is to Bra-
zil and Statoil is to Norway.”
With retained earnings of more than
$US3 billion, NGC is cashed up and in
a strong position to take advantage of ex-
pansion opportunities. NGC President,
Indar Maharaj, says he is talking to a
number of companies about NGC tak-
ing an equity interest in new gas-based
projects that go further down the manu-
facturing chain. “This gives the investor
a sense of security in that the National
Gas Company is going to participate, and
it also gives us an opportunity to bring
added value to the country by participat-
ing as what is almost a private investor.”
He says partnerships between the
private and public sectors at Port Lisas
Estate go back as far as 1981. “There
was a lean period in the commodity
markets and the government was forced
to sell off many of its equity interests.
Now we have come full circle and we
know we need to manage our risk when
we invest in these businesses, and have
a better understanding of the cyclical
nature of commodity markets. We must
have a long-term perspective.”
Maharaj says NGC is also focusing
on building international presence. “We
have to go globally. It is imperative that
as our business matures we look at other
geographic markets, first by taking baby
steps and then quickly accelerating.”
PPGPL is making its own plans
for international expansion, accord-
ing to President,
Eugene Tiah. “We
have had suc-
cess here and we
want to take what
we have devel-
oped and start
internationaliz-
ing the business.
Our ambition is to go to countries that
have new-found sources of natural gas
and say: ‘We think we can help you.
We would like to participate with you
to develop similar businesses as an eq-
uity partner, just as ConocoPhillips was
a joint partner here with other enti-
ties.’” Tiah says PPGPL is looking at op-
portunities in Tanzania, Mozambique,
Ghana, Nigeria, Bolivia, Colombia
and other countries in Latin America
and Africa where there have been major
gas discoveries.
toFCo is a leading provider of
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“We have to go globally.
It is imperative that as our
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Mr. Indar Maharaj
President NGC
Courtesy of NGC

10. The government is pushing the petroleum
industry to go further downstream and find
ways to add even more value to gas resources
Minister of Finance Larry Howai
says methanol and ammonia
are only the first step downstream and
can be stepping stones to products of
higher value. “If you go further down-
stream you get to things like sodium
methoxide and melamine. You can go
to petrochemicals and polypropylenes
and so on. We are looking to go further
downstream in the energy sector and
build on the strengths we have.”
The push downstream includes a
$US250 million plan to encourage
the country’s car-loving population
to switch to compressed natural gas
(CNG), which is significantly cheaper at
the pump than gasoline. The plan cre-
ates a new, value-added market for gas
within Trinidad and Tobago, and will
make it easier for the government to
phase out a generous gasoline subsidy.
Government-owned National Pe-
troleum Marketing Company (NP) has
already established seven CNG fuel out-
lets at key locations as part of a major
upgrade of its network of 140 service
stations. The roll-
out of multi-sta-
tions with CNG
pumps is part of
a plan to convert
90,000 of the
country’s 690,000
vehicles to CNG
within five years.
NP Chief Executive Officer, Kenneth
Mohammad, said CNG is a cheap and
environmentally friendly fuel. “There
should be an aggressive move for the
country to CNG, especially in Tobago
where we are the only fuel provider. The
sea transport is a heavy burden for us.”
“I spoke to a taxi driver the other
day who had converted his vehicle to
CNG. He uses TT$20 a day and he
works from six in the morning to six
in the evening. TT$20 of CNG, that
is about US$3 for the entire day.”
Mohammad was appointed a year ago to
put NP on a stronger competitive foot-
ing. While it has some competition as
fuel retailer, it will be subjected to an
onslaught by new entrants if the gov-
ernment subsidy is removed. The new
CEO is also leading an expansion by NP
into under-developed markets at home
such as marine bunkering and into new
markets in the region.
The country’s two methanol produc-
ers, Methanex Trinidad and Methanol
Heading further downstream
to add more value
“CNG (compressed natural gas) is a
cheap and environmentally friendly
fuel. ….There should be an aggres-
sive move for the country to CNG”
Mr. Kenneth Mohammed
NP Marketing CEO
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Holdings (Trinidad) Ltd, also have their
sights set on the liquid fuels market.
Methanex Trinidad Managing Director,
Charles Percy, says methanol demand
has traditionally been tied to the level of
activity in the building industry. In re-
cent years, however, the largest driver of
global demand has been the increasing
use of methanol in China to blend with
higher-priced gasoline. Most vehicles
can use fuels with up to 10% methanol
without modification.
“Even though we are on this side
of the world, it has been worth our
while to sell methanol to China. So
we thought ‘Can we do fuel blending
here in Trinidad, albeit that we have
cheap liquid fuel, and show that it
works outside China?’ We decided to
come together with our competitor and
launch a study of blending methanol
in the fuel pool. We recognise that the
Trinidad market is small, but once we
can show it can be done here by two
of the world’s largest players in the
methanol business, we can take that and
use it anywhere in the world. That will
enhance the opportunity for growth in
the methanol market globally.”
Percy says a technical feasibility study
has been completed and a commercial
plan is currently with the government.
“Once the technical and commercial
plans have been put together we expect
that project to go forward.”
The plan will create additional pres-
sure to boost the country’s gas reserves
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Pitch Lake at La Brea in southwest
Trinidad is a natural wonder of the
world. The lake has fascinated explor-
ers and scientists since its discovery
in 1595 by Sir Walter Raleigh, who ex-
tracted tar to caulk his ship.
The lake has been ‘mined’ for almost
a century and is widely known for its
excellent asphalt, which has been used
to pave the grounds of Buckingham
Palace, famous international airports
and even Germany’s autobahns.
Lake Asphalt of Trinidad and Tobago
is the government-owned corporation
with responsibility for mining and man-
aging the lake, which is also one of the
country’s biggest tourist attractions.
Chairman Kuarlal Rampersad says
the company is seeking a publicly list-
ed joint venture partner with the funds
to modernize the company’s infrastruc-
ture and the skills to support a major
expansion. A push into downstream
markets such as roofing membranes is
also a priority.
“There are a few asphalt lakes in
other countries, but material from these
lakes must be processed. Our asphalt is
natural and is a phenomenal product.
That is why a lot of people come to us.
The market is huge and our only chal-
lenge is to keep up with demand.”
Rampersad says China leads demand.
“We have just signed China Railway
Construction Company has signed to
take 30,000 metric tonnes for the first
three years and that is to be renewed
for another 50,000 metric tonnes on an
annual basis for the following five years.
We also have Brazil, which is very inter-
ested of World Cup and the Olympics in
the very near future.”
New clients are also lining up in
Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Panama,
which is upgrading its road network
from concrete to asphalt.
New markets for a natural wonder

11. • Entrepreneurial
• Trinidad focussed
• Onshore oil producer
• Listed in London on AIM
• With a track record in environmentally
sensitive areas
DELIvErIng grOWTh ThrOugh AcquIsITIOn Of PrOvEn
rEsErvEs EnhAncEMEnT Of PrODucIng AssETs
www.lenigasandoil.com
because availability of feedstock is
already an issue for Methanex. “In Trini-
dad and Tobago we have had very good
feedstock supply over the years. Only
in the last two years, we have had some
supply challenges and not been able to
get all the supply we want,” Percy says.
The government-owned National
Energy Company (NEC) is spearheading
the country’s move further downstream.
NEC was formed in 1979 as a separate
entity to partner with NGC on making
the Trinidad model a reality. Today, NEC
is a wholly owned subsidiary, but still
operates independently. NEC built Point
Lisas Industrial Estate and a number of
the key projects within it. This group
includes the world-scale methanol
plant, TT MC1, which
was privatized and is now
operated by MHTL.
NEC’s former President,
Andrew Jupiter, says when
NEC was established in
1979 the government had
a simple request that is still
currenttoday.“Wewereaskednotonlyto
facilitate, not only to promote, not only
to create and conceptualise, but to make
it happen ourselves. And NEC made
Point Lisas Industrial Estate happen.”
He says the evolution of the country’s
downstream industry has already passed
through three generations — gas, meth-
anol and LNG — and is now entering a
new phase that will feature value-added
manufacturing by smaller companies
using feedstocks such as formaldehyde
and melamine.
“The fourth generation must be dif-
ferent, whereby we should link energy
to manufacturing. The operators of
these projects will not have $US1.5 bil-
lion to build a methanol plant or an am-
monia plant, but they will have $US10
to $US15 million to give to us, to go
further downstream and make lami-
nates, plasticides and to be involved in
coatings and all of those areas.”
Jupiter said the new generation of
downstream manufacturers could be
easily financed by local banks, creating
new industries and employment.
“I believe we must also have to look
at inorganic chemicals, like calcium
chloride. These projects would take
only a small amount of gas, but they
can be brought onstream faster and
they create employment.”
“The evolution of the country’s downstream industry
has already passed through three generations
— gas, methanol and LNG — and is now entering
a new phase that will feature value-added
manufacturing”
Mr. Andrew Jupiter, NEC former President
Port at Point Lisas
Government-owned First Citizens
Bank of Trinidad and Tobago is
stepping up its support for the country’s
energy sector.
Chief Executive Officer Larry Nath
says some of the traditional large energy
banks had decreased their global activi-
ties because of challenges in their home
markets, potentially creating opportuni-
ties for local lenders such as First Citi-
zens. Nath is well aware of the increased
risks and complexities of financing larger
energy projects, which is why First Citi-
zen has formed an alliance with a major
global bank to take on bigger mandates.
“We have teamed up with an internation-
al investment bank with a global energy
practice and are already in the market for
financing deals for a number of larger
energy projects. This represents a differ-
ent role for First Citizens compared to
the past, when we supported local proj-
ects as a junior member of a multi-bank
syndicate. Our new alliance is the best of
both worlds. It allows First Citizens to
help fill a potential financing gap for the
country’s most important industry, with-
out taking on inappropriate risks for our
shareholder.”
First Citizens already has a wide and
deep connection with the energy indus-
try as a lender to the country’s vibrant
and diverse oil and gas services industry.
Nath says the service industry in Trini-
dad and Tobago is
the oldest in the
region and has de-
veloped strongly,
especially over the
past 20 years.
“In the early
days, the global
service providers dominated the local
industry, but now we have a number
of local entrepreneurs stepping up,
providing things such as supply boats and
upstream services. These are financed by
Citizens Bank and other local lenders,
which would have been unthinkable
in the not-too-distant past. They have
taken their services into international
markets are winning business in head-
to-head competition with the global
firms. We’re proud to have played a role
in supporting the development of these
local champions.”
Nath says there has never been a bet-
ter time to invest in Trinidad and Tobago.
“The country has already taken many de-
cisions in terms of changing regulations
to encourage investment. A great amount
of work has been done to improve the
incentives, including tax concessions
that have made it more attractive to bring
in offshore rigs and related equipment.
We have enviable double tax treaties
and market access treaties, which means
companies setting up here have the op-
tion of exchanging goods and services
with other countries at very competitive
prices throughout the world.”
Nath added that Trinidad and Tobago
was also becoming a strategic entry
point to the region for an increasing
number of multinationals. “We have
been an independent country now for
50 years and have had orderly elections
every five years under a Westminister-
style system of democracy. We offer
stability for business investment, and
we are finding that more companies are
expressing an interest in establishing a
base for investment here and entering
into neighbouring energy provinces.”
The people’s bank of Trinidad and Tobago takes
on a larger role as traditional lenders retreat
First Citizens boosts
support for energy sector
“There has never been a better
time to invest in Trinidad and Tobago.
The country has already taken
essentially all the hard decisions in
terms of changing regulations and
laws to encourage investment”
MR. Larry Nath, Group CEO
First Citizens’ support for the energy
industry was extended recently into
the renewable sector. The bank has
partnered with Trinidad-based So-
laris Energy to help residential cus-
tomers purchase and install solar hot
water systems in their homes.
To encourage homeowners to
make the switch to green energy,
First Citizens offers low interest rates
on solar energy financing. Homeown-
ers can also capitalise on generous
government incentives, including a
25% tax credit on solar water heat-
ers and 0% VAT on solar water heat-
ers and photovoltaic systems.
First Citizens’ support for renew-
ables is part of the bank’s large
community assistance program. This
includes a long history as a major
sponsor of petroleum industry con-
ferences along with the country’s
annual Trade Investment Conven-
tion, which is the largest B2B con-
ference in the region. First Citizens
is also a supporter of the country’s
geoscience and engineering students
through scholarships and bursaries.
Change for tomorrow
Port of Spain view

12. Locals leverage their strong skills base and
favorable currency into a winning position
Home-grown service
companies compete
head-on with global players
Oil and gas service industries are
thick on the ground in Trinidad
and Tobago, as might be expected in a
country that began producing oil over
a century ago. But what many overseas
operators do not expect is the large
number of home-grown companies that
can compete head-on with the global
heavyweights of the services sector.
The favorable US/TT dollar exchange
rate gives local companies a significant
cost advantage over international com-
petitors, but a forex benefit on its own
would never deliver success in the highly
demanding petroleum industry. Lo-
cal companies have competed success-
fully against all comers by leveraging the
country’s renowned skill base and focus-
ing on innovation and service.
A strong supply of local skills has also
been a big factor in their success. The
government took the lead in 1997 by
establishing the National Energy Skills
Center (NESC) to co-ordinate and drive
training efforts across the public and
private sectors. To date, the Centre has
trained 12,000 tradespeople and another
110,000 in information technology. The
NESC is always improving, with logistics
provider JSL International co-operating
on the development of a new training
facility that simulates the high-stress
conditions on the floor of an offshore rig.
One of the best examples of home-
grown service companies is Trinidad Off-
shore Fabrication Unlimited (TOFCO),
established 10 years ago as a joint ven-
ture between Weldfab of Trinidad and
Methanex is the world’s largest supplier of methanol to major
international markets with production facilities in Canada, Chile,
Egypt, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago.
www.methanex.com
Global leader in methanol supply
Methanex’s two-plant facility, Point Lisas, Trinidad
Beachfield Launcher Station
Chet Morrison Contractors of Louisi-
ana, USA. TOFCO has quickly become
established as a leading provider of
fabrication, construction and offshore
services for platforms and facilities.
The company’s first project was bpTT’s
Cannonball platform. Other clients
include EOG and BG, including BG’s
Poinsettia platform, which is the larg-
est constructed in Trinidad and Tobago.
General Manager Shuresh Gangabis-
soon says when TOFCO started it was
the ‘new kid on the block’ and had to
compete with established and proven
contractors. “BP took a
bold step in giving us our
first project, which was at a
time when government was
placing a lot of emphasis on
local content. We finished
Cannonball on time, within
budget and very good qual-
ity. That led others to come
on board.”
He says overseas petro-
leum companies have an op-
portunity to build a stronger
relationship with Trinidad
and Tobago by selecting lo-
cal contractors such as TOF-
CO. “We have the skills,
with the exception of some
of the design engineering,
and there is a cost advan-
tage. It costs much more
to bring ex-pats to Trini-
dad, but you can achieve
the same high standards by
having just one ex-pat who
works with four or five local
engineers. That also builds
local skills as well.”
Hydro Tech is another lo-
cal company that has grown
into a strong competitor for
maintenance service operators based
overseas. The business began in 1987
as a hydro-blasting business, but pro-
gressively expanded into a full range of
maintenance and related construction
services. Hydro Tech Chairman Trevor
Lynch says the company’s first client
back in 1980s was Amoco (now BP).
“We have been accustomed to working
to international standards with glob-
al technologies since our inception.
We have continued over time to keep
abreast of new developments so we
can bring that kind of value to the
client.” He says
Hydro Tech’s suc-
cess stems from its
long-term focus on
developing an inte-
grated maintenance
solution.“Offshore
facilities have limits
in terms of space and
equipment, so we thought an integrat-
ed and multi-skilled team would bring
a lot of value to the sector.”
High technology service providers
such as Coastal Dynamics have also set
up base in Trinidad and Tobago. The
small consulting company is run by
two oceanographers, Nazeer Gopaul
and Frank Teelucksingh, who special-
ize in modeling ocean conditions and
providing environmental studies for the
oil and gas industry. The company was
the first to conduct numerical modeling
of ocean currents in Trinidad, and is the
leading the use of global models in local
conditions. Today, Coastal Dynamic’s
client list includes all of Trinidad and
Tobago’s major petroleum companies.
Other home-grown success stories in
the services sector include Trinsulate 2
Caribbean. The company
operates in the specialized
field of thermal insulation,
which is dominated by
global providers. Manag-
ing Director Ian Fernandes
says the company’s success
reflects its understanding
of the importance of ser-
vice and 24/7 availability.
“That’s been a major selling
point to our clients in Point
Lisas and elsewhere. To get
a Trinidadian to come out
and work at Carnival is a
major challenge, but we
have completed urgent
jobs for clients even during
the festival.”
Perfection Services is
a local company that has
carved out a leading posi-
tion as a supplier of cargo
container units, tanks and
other modular units for the
offshore sector. Perfection
Services Chief Executive
Officer Desmond Roberts
says the company is ex-
panding on a number of
fronts, including offshore
accommodation units for platforms in
Trinidad. New geographic markets are
also being targeted in partnership with
other service companies. “I am look-
ing to establish Perfection Services in a
number of countries in the region. Bar-
bados is one, and I would like to have
a presence in Cuba. Guyana and French
Guiana are others we are looking at.
Now is the time to establish in these
countries, and Suriname, because they
will become like Brazil.”
First Citizens already has a wide and deep connection with the industry
as a lender to the country’s vibrant and diverse oil and gas industry and
the First Citizens Group is one of the leading financial services groups in
Trinidad and Tobago. First Citizens offers a full range of retail, corporate
and merchant banking as well as asset management, trustee and
brokerage services.
The Group is headquartered in Trinidad and Tobago and First Citizens
Bank, which is the largest part of the Group, has an extensive retail
branch network in Trinidad and Tobago with a large deployment of ATM
and point of sale devices in both islands.
First Citizens Bank of the Year 2012
Building our
Future through
Innovation
Service and
Excellence
First Citizens already has a wide and deep connection with the industry
as a lender to the country’s vibrant and diverse oil and gas industry and
the First Citizens Group is one of the leading financial services groups in
Trinidad and Tobago. First Citizens offers a full range of retail, corporate
and merchant banking as well as asset management, trustee and
brokerage services.
The Group is headquartered in Trinidad and Tobago and First Citizens
Bank, which is the largest part of the Group, has an extensive retail
branch network in Trinidad and Tobago with a large deployment of ATM
and point of sale devices in both islands.
www.firstcitizenstt.com
First Citizens Bank of the Year 2012
“I am looking to establish the
company in a number of
countries in the region”
Mr. Desmond Roberts
Perfection Services Managing Director

13. Safety culture second to none
JSL International is at the forefront of
local companies exporting oil and gas
services know-how to the Caribbean
region and beyond. The Port of Spain-
headquartered company provides logis-
tics to the increasing number of drilling
companies in Trinidad and Tobago as
part of the recent upswing in explora-
tion activity.
JSL exports know-how to the region
JSL was estab-
lished only five
years ago, but
has already em-
barked on rapid
expansion in the
region, accord-
ing to Managing
Director Javid Ramcharitar. “Currently
we’re operating in Colombia, Guyana,
Suriname, French Guyana and we’re
in the process of expanding into Nica-
ragua, Brazil and the Gulf of Mexico.
As you know Trinidad has a lot of expe-
rience in terms of the oil and gas sec-
tor, a hundred years plus. With all of the
upcoming activity in the region, we be-
lieve that we can export our knowledge
“We proudly implement
localization and nationalization
plans across the region”
Mr. Javid Ramcharitar
JSL International CEO
and know-how in terms of expand-
ing and we’ve done so successfully.
The beauty of JSL is that we proudly
implement localization and national-
ization plans across the region. We
incorporate locals, for example we go
into Colombia and incorporate Colom-
bians into the project. We bring them
to Trinidad and make sure they get
necessary offshore training.”
Methanex workers
Major oil companies and contractors are signing
on to Trinidad’s own standards in safety
Decades of experience have taught com-
panies in Trinidad and Tobago the im-
portance of safety. This is reflected in the
outstanding safety records of a number of
companies, including Phoenix Park Gas
Processors and Hydro Tech, which have
not had lost time accidents in decades.
The local Energy Chamber has for-
malized the country’s high safety stan-
dards with its Safe to Work (STOW) pro-
gram, launched six years ago. Chamber
President, Roger Packer, says STOW is
a formal certification program in health,
safety and environment practices. “We
ask all contractors to sign on to a Trini-
dad and Tobago standard, which is set
very high, like a Harvard degree.” STOW
certification is not mandatory, but the
major petroleum companies have begun
setting deadlines by which all contrac-
tors must be STOW certified. The coun-
try’s safety culture has also helped create
the leading safety products company in
the region, Caribbean Safety Products.
The company began in 1983 with a
staff of 12 manufacturing leather gloves.
Today, it employs almost 400 people and
supplies safety products, services, secu-
rity and training to more than 600 cus-
tomers worldwide. Managing Director,
Dipinder Manocha, says the company’s
success reflects its closeness to custom-
ers in the region
and an under-
standing of their
needs. “We are
the only compa-
ny in the Ameri-
cas that will
make a product
to suit the cus-
tomer’s design, regardless of the size or
quantity of the product. We will make
products to suit the customer’s specifica-
tions, and we work as a consultant to as-
sist them in making sure they follow local
and international OHS regulations.”
JSL International Managing Di-
rector Javid Ramcharitar says many
international arrivals in Trinidad are sur-
prised the country safety standards are so
high. “Typically when foreigners think of
Trinidad and Tobago, they do not realize
the level of sophistication and falsely as-
sume they will be doing the instruction,
but many companies come here and im-
prove their knowledge about work safety.
Because we’ve had a petrochemical base
in Trinidad for 100 plus years, we’ve im-
portedabestpracticeandit’sbeenorganic.
It’s evolved. We’ve recognized interna-
tional standards that have been imple-
mented for decades now so there’s a lot
of good practice in existence.”
“We work as a consultant to assist
the customers in making sure they
follow local and international OHS
regulations”
Mr. Dipinder Manocha
CSP Managing Director
A major program to build infrastructure will
help diversify the economy and support
new growth by the petroleum sector
Trinidad and Tobago has begun
an ambitious, 12-year program of
building infrastructure to diversify its
economic base. The goal is to increase
the non-energy sector’s share of GDP to
66% over the next five years.
The plan has been named the
Public Sector Investment Programme
(PSIP) and kicked off with spending of
$US1.2 billion in last year’s Budget.
The government aims to harness
private investment as well by creating a
number of public private partnerships
— a first for the country.
The government’s objective is to
boost the quality and reach of the coun-
try’s infrastructure, with an emphasis on
projects supporting non-energy indus-
tries such as financial services, tourism,
information and communications tech-
nology, agriculture and creative arts.
Maritime industry is also a key target
because of the expansion of Panama
Canal and the additional shipping
activity expected to pass through the
region from 2015. Transport Minister,
Chandresh Sharma, says the Panama
Canal expansion brings “enormous
opportunities for us because we have
such a strategic location and we have the
human resources. We are able to turn
ships over and service them very quickly.
We also have the benefit of some of the
lowest fuel costs in the world.”
In December, Sharma announced
the government was seeking expres-
sions of interest in the construction
of a third major port, at La Brea. Ports
Authority Chairman Joseph Toney says
the new La Brea
port will mean
oil and gas com-
panies and other
business will not
have to rely on
any one port to
get their plant
and equipment
into the country.
“The idea is that business will have no
excuse for not wanting to do business
with us, and no excuse for not being
comfortable in getting plant, cranes and
whatever on to shore. We are discov-
ering more gas and oil so there will be
many more opportunities and the en-
ergy sector can only expand and grow
if we have these facilities for those who
want to do business with us.”
Infrastructure investment to
support next wave of growth
“The Panama Canal expansion brings
enormous opportunities for us because
we have such a strategic location and
we have the human resources”
Mr. Chandresh Sharma
Minister of Transport

14. Cargo area at port
Toney was appointed just over a
year ago to lead a revitalization of
ports services. “We have had our
challenges, but we are making progress.
Equipment is being repaired. We have
a new system to locate items quickly
and move cargo around efficiently. We
are also getting the union and Ports
Authority agreement in sync. We want
a comfortable and satisfied workforce.”
The energy industry has not been
left behind in the rush to diversify,
with plans for another new indus-
trial port on the east coast to support
deepwater exploration in the Atlantic.
Design and construction of the new
Galeota Port is be-
ing managed by
the National En-
ergy Corporation
(NEC). The new
port will expand
an existing facility
developed decades
ago to support
Amoco’s explora-
tion and produc-
tion. NEC’s former
President, Andrew
Jupiter, says the
plan is to create a
port that can meet
the needs of all of
the country’s off-
shore EP compa-
nies. “Beyond that,
we have also seen
what is happening
in Suriname and
Guyana, and also
in French Guiana.
We believe that we
can use the Galeota
Port as the base to
service the new de-
velopments that are
happening in these countries. So for the
first time we are looking beyond Trinidad
and Tobago for port operations to the
wider region.” Point Lisas Industrial Port
Development Corporation (PLIPDECO)
is also considering an expansion of its
port facilities. President Ashley Taylor
says the expansion could be part of a
public private partnership with a global-
ly experienced operator in port manage-
ment. “The big focus for us is port and
logistics. While energy will continue to
be a focus, we feel one of the growth ar-
eas we have yet to capitalise on is trade
and logistics.”
Renewables get a
kick-start
In a country with abundant and inex-
pensive fossil fuels, it is no surprise
renewable energy has been slow to
take off. The government is forcing the
community’s hand by driving a switch
from gasoline to compressed natural
gas and is also stimulating investment
in renewables such as solar and wind.
Once such company that plays both
fields is the Trinidad-based Mora Ven
Holdings which, in addition to its suc-
cessful oilfield, has captured a large
share of the market of hot water heat-
ers with its innovative sister company
Solaris Energy Limited. They design
and manufacture their products in
the Caribbean and are expanding into
solar electricity (photovoltaics) and
wind energy.
Leading the way in energy solutions
Mora Ven Holdings Limited operates Trinidad Tobago’s
oil field, Mora Oil Ventures is a local leader in natural
resource based energy solutions. Supporting
Mora Oil Ventures is its sister company, Solaris
Energy Limited, an internationally recognized,
innovative renewable energy company. Dedicated
to showcasing regional talent and ability, Solaris
Energy designs and manufactures its industry-
leading products in the Caribbean. Together, they
push Mora Ven Holdings as a true force in energy.
1-868-628-3708 mail@moraven.com
energy company - Mora Oil Ventures. With its prolific
The recent Savonette discovery by BP
could easily be an emblem of the fu-
ture of the country’s petroleum industry.
The discovery of 1 TcF of gas-in-place
was made from BP’s producing platform
and will be brought into production al-
most immediately at 250 million standard
cubic feet per day. It is an impressive re-
minder that Trinidad and Tobago is big
petroleum territory and that massive po-
tential is within easy reach.
The signs everywhere are promising.
Government-owned Petrotrin is leading
the renaissance with plans to invest more
than $US2 billion in redevelopments
of old fields and major exploration pro-
grams both onshore and offshore. The
private sector also has aggressive plans to
boost investment. Atlantic LNG is invest-
ing $US500 million in maintenance this
year in a clear signal it sees a very bright
future ahead, even in the wake of the US
shale gas revolution.
BHP Billiton has just committed to
spend $US565 million to offshore explo-
ration and is leading a new wave of explor-
ers seeking giant oil fields in the Atlantic.
BP is also exploring deepwater and has
plans to invest up to $US6 billion over
the next few years, including a possible
subsea development of its Juniper field.
There are still hurdles. BP says investment
is not a certainty and needs the right gas
prices from NGC and an appropriate fiscal
regime. The government acknowledges
industry’s calls for more to be done, and
promises to have good news in 2013. It
will be a new chapter in a highly success-
ful relationship between government and
industry that has already run for 50 years.
The attraction of Trinidad and Tobago
is perhaps best summed up by the Presi-
New investment from the public and private
sectors is flooding in with the aim of unlocking
untapped potential
A brighter oil and gas future in
easy reach
dent of Phoenix Park Gas Processors, Eu-
gene Tiah, who has worked in the indus-
try for 30 years. “I have seen consistency,
regardless of which government has been
in power. There have been tweaks in the
energy policy but the policy has more
or less remained consistent and open to
incentivising overseas investment. Once
you come and establish a business there
is clarity about the requirements and
there is a good understanding of a need
for regulation, not strangulation.” A na-
tion that lives off multi-billion dollar for-
eign investment could not have a better
pitch than that.
Worker in a LNG plant

15. www.elitespecialsections.com