Natural gas production in Trinidad and Tobago dropped below 2 billion cubic feet per day (bcf/d) in June — the first time in 22 years.
Three major natural gas producers in Trinidad and Tobago had declines in output in June which drove down the country’s total production to 1.96 billion cubic feet per day (bcf/d). Gas output had been above 2 bcf/d every month since August 2002, government data shows.
Reduced output from bpTT, Shell and Woodside contributed to a 24% decline in June 2024, compared to the January-May average of approximately 2.58 bcf/d.
Shell’s production declined 7% from May to 559 million cubic feet per day (mcf/d) in June, while bpTT declined 21% to 937 mcf/d.
Woodside’s decline was almost wiped out from 312 mcf/d in May to 21 mcf/d in June. The company told Upstream in July that a process safety incident led it to halt production. Trinidad’s Energy Ministry had said the incident led to a significant reduction in gas supply which in turn affected the end users of gas. Declines in natural gas utilization were recorded in June, significantly affecting ammonia and methanol manufacture.
Woodside was the third largest natural gas producer in Trinidad last year with 337 mcf/d, but slipped to fourth place below EOG in the first half of 2024, averaging 271 mcf/d, according to government data.
Aside from Woodside’s incident, the production dip below 2 bcf/d is part of a broader decline in Trinidad’s gas production. This stems from the slow pace of bringing new developments online to offset the natural decline of mature fields. Output in 2023 was almost 2.59 bcf/d, and averaged 2.58 bcf/d in the first half of 2024. Oil and condensate production averaged 49,627 barrels per day (b/d) in the first half — the first time below 50,000 b/d since 1938.
The country has less than 12 trillion cubic feet of natural gas reserves, based on its most recent audit.
