BP signss agreement with Venezuela for offshore gas fields
BP and the Venezuelan government signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Wednesday. The company and government announced that BP would develop Venezuela's Cocuina Manakin gas -field on the maritime border between Trinidad and Tobago as well as explore joint opportunities at a gas field offshore called Loran. Venezuela recently signed deals for exploration and other services with international producers such as Italy's Eni, Spain's Repsol and others, following the January ouster of Nicolas Maduro by U.S. troops.
The return of BP was a sign of the 'future' we wanted to chart for Venezuela, and international energy relations, based on mutual respect, cooperation rooted in a win-win strategy, and shared benefits which contribute to the Venezuelans development, said Venezuelan interim president Delcy Rodriguez at a signing ceremony that was broadcast live on state TV.
William?Lin BP's Executive Vice?President for Gas and Low Carbon Energy said that the company is pleased to partner with Venezuela in the exploration of Loran as well as other projects including the commercialization gas. Shell has also expressed an interest in Loran.
In a statement, Rodriguez's Office said that the MOU signed Wednesday "officialized the start of gas development at the Cocuina Manakin field," which is a field located on the border between Trinidad and Tobago (T&T) and Venezuela.
Cocuina is a Venezuelan project that was inactive. It extends to Trinidad where a BP-owned subsidiary operates the Block 5b.
Rodriguez's office stated that the agreement "represents an important milestone for the national energy industry, by reactivating multinational's presence within key areas of the Deltana Platform."
BP announced in February that it would be seeking a license to?develop Manakin-Cocuina Gas Field from the U.S. Government.
The 'company wants to develop a field to bring 1 trillion cubic feet worth of gas to Trinidad for conversion into liquefied gas that can be exported. Reporting by Deisy and Marianna Buitrago; Writing by Julia Symmes Cobb, Editing by Lincoln Feast.
(source: Reuters)
