Shell Shelves Aphrodite Offshore Gas Project in Trinidad
Talks with state aggregator NGC collapsed over the price of 2.83m cu m a day
Shell has shelved its Aphrodite offshore gas project in Trinidad and Tobago after failing to agree commercial terms with the country's state gas aggregator, the National Gas Company.
The UK major gave Aphrodite a positive final investment decision last year. It has now decided not to proceed for the time being, after negotiations over the sale of around 2.83m cu m per day of expected gas production broke down.
NGC sits at the centre of the country's gas economy, buying from producers and supplying downstream users including the petrochemical sector and Atlantic LNG, in which Shell holds a 45% stake. Without an agreed offtake price, the volumes Aphrodite was designed to deliver have no contracted route to market.
"Shell is in ongoing negotiations and confirms that the initial rig slot for Aphrodite has been released," the company said, adding that it would continue to evaluate the overall integrated project schedule.
Releasing a rig slot is the clearest operational marker of a delay. Drilling capacity in the region is contracted well in advance, and a slot surrendered now is unlikely to be recovered at short notice, pushing first gas further out even if the commercial dispute is later settled.
The setback lands on a gas sector that has spent years working to replenish feedstock. Despite the Aphrodite decision, Trinidad continues to pursue cross-border developments with Venezuela intended to supply Atlantic LNG and support the wider energy sector over the coming decade.
Caracas has granted both Shell and BP licences for cross-border gas projects expected to allow Venezuelan gas to be produced and transported to Trinidad for processing and export. Those schemes are seen as critical to stabilising supply to the island's LNG and petrochemical industries, and they carry their own political and sanctions complications.
Trinidad's offshore basin continues to attract supply-chain work even as the commercial picture remains unsettled, with subsea hardware still being shipped in for gas field developments. No revised timetable for Aphrodite has been set.
