Trinidad and Tobago shows interest in Ghana`s oil and gas industry

Ghana's emerging oil and gas industry continues to attracts lots of foreign investors, the latest being the twin island of Trinidad and Tobago.

The tiny island in the Caribbean began showing an interest in Ghana's new found oil in 2008, after a high profile delegation visited the Caribbean state at the instance of then President John Agyekum Kufuor, to understudy their rich experience in the oil and gas industry.

In affirming its interest, a high profile delegation, notably from the private sector, led by Mrs. Victoria Mendez-Charles, Ambassador of Trinidad and Tobago to Nigeria, has arrived in Ghana, and are in talks with the country's leaders on a possible investment in its energy sector.

The delegation, having visited the Akosombo dam over the weekend, on Monday met Ghana's two deputy Ministers of Energy, Emmanuel Kofi Armah-Buah and Dr. Kwabena Donkor, in Accra to officially announce their interest in the West African state's emerging oil and gas industry, particularly, its petrochemical sector.

The delegates were drawn from various private companies, which have high experiences in the areas of formulating strategies, regulatory framework and policies that have seen Trinidad and Tobago's continuous growth in its energy sector over the past 50 years. They are all members of the South Trinidad Chamber of Industry and Commerce (STCIC).

Dr. Kwabena Donkor, in his interaction with the delegation, expressed the belief that their engagement would benefit the two countries.

“We believe oil and gas must be a blessing. No resource must be a curse,” he said, as he spoke with passion to indicate how Ghana was preparing to make its oil revenue benefit the local people, adding, “We are not interested making oil and gas poverty reduction, but wealth creation.”

Oil exploration in some parts of the world is being marred by violence, as a result of neglect of the local people.

Trinidad and Tobago is well known for its rich module in local content, which involves engaging the local people in the exploration of oil and gas, and is expected to implement the same strategies when given the nod to have a stake in Ghana's oil industry.

Mrs. Victoria Mendez-Charles told the Ghanaian leaders that her government was prepared to share with Ghana the challenges encountered by her country over the past 50 years, and was of the firm belief that Ghana would make good use of its new found oil.

She advised the Ghanaian leaders to pay much attention to the private sector, and formulate policies that would see its growth, since it was the engine of growth of every country.

Trinidad and Tobago has made a transition from an oil-based economy to one based on natural gas. Natural gas production over the period October 2007 through April 2008 was 115.2 million cubic meters per day, up from 111.9 million cubic meters per day over the same period in 2006-2007.

About half of the country's natural gas production is converted into liquefied natural gas (LNG) at the Atlantic LNG facility in Trinidad, and exported under long-term contracts and on the spot market.

Trinidad and Tobago is the fifth-largest exporter of LNG in the world, and the single largest supplier of LNG to the U.S., providing two-thirds of all LNG imported into the U.S. since 2002.

It has for the last 20 years been the leading exporter of methanol, ammonia, urea and liquefied natural gas.

In 2008, 46% of the country's (Trinidad and Tobago) GDP was derived from its oil and gas industry.