New BG wells to ease Trinidad gas cuts

Natural gas curtailments in major LNG producer Trinidad and Tobago will begin to ease next month with the start-up of BG subsidiary bgTT's three-well offshore Starfish field, energy minister Keven Ramnarine said on 11 October.

Starfish output of about 220mn ft³/d (6.16mn m3/d) will be supplied to state-run gas company NGC and LNG producer Atlantic, bgTT said.

"Starfish reserves remain undisclosed, but bgTT believes Starfish is a major development," the company said.

Starfish is located 80km (49.7mi) off Trinidad's east coast. BG operates the field with a 50pc stake. Chevron holds the other 50pc.

Intermittent gas curtailments, estimated at 20pc to 30pc of normal supply, have been mainly affecting the petrochemicals sector since around February 2014.

BP´s offshore Juniper project, with 590mn ft³/d due on stream from 2017, should further boost gas supply.

Juniper has prospective gas reserves of 1 trillion ft³ and drilling will start next year, BP said in August.

"We expect to see improvements in reserves and output in the near to medium term," Ramnarine said.

The minister blamed the cuts on "underinvestment by major upstream companies between 2008 and 2010," and platform maintenance by BP and BG.

He also pointed to "a higher emphasis on safety in a post-Macondo world," referring to the BP´s huge 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

Trinidad´s gas production averaged 4.1bn ft³/d between January and August, down by 3.5pc from a year earlier, the energy ministry said on 10 October.

Atlantic produced a total of 21.3mn m³ of LNG between January and August, down by 5.8pc from the corresponding period last year.

cj/pg

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