The Ministry of Energy and Energy Affairs, BHP Billiton, Chaoyang Petroleum and the National Gas Company of T&T (NGC) signed an extension to the block 2(c) production sharing contract on Tuesday at the ministry's head office at the Port-of-Spain International Waterfront Centre.
"With this amendment, the contract term has been extended for a five-year period from April 22, 2021-2026. The initial production sharing contract which was signed on April 22, 1996, provided for an exploration period of six years and upon commercial discovery, a term of 25 years from the effective date of the contract.
"As such, the commercial discovery of the Angostura Field in 1999 provided for the contract term to be extended to 25 years ending on April 21, 2021. This contract also provided for an extension of the term for a further five years should commercial production remain possible beyond the term," a statement from the ministry said.
The statement said the extension comes in the wake of a proposal by BHB Billiton, the operator, "to undertake the Angostura Phase 3 Development Project at an estimated investment of US$400 million. This project is expected to result in an additional crude oil production of 2.8 million barrels and approximately 400-500 billion cubic feet of natural gas that would boost the country's supply availability.
"The new supply of natural gas from this project (app 100m standard cubit feet of gas per day by the year 2016) will serve to further benefit the country by enhancing security of supplies."
