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advised that this is BP's largest


We are


Trinidad and Tobago in


discovery in


Tobago since 2007


natural gas in Trinidad and


discovery of


seven years and the largest


fact, throughout its first 100 years of commercial existence, the vast preponderance of Trinidad and Tobago's energy industry has been reliant on foreign capital. However, if there was any secret to success


for Trinidad and Tobago's energy industry, it would have to be diversity. A diversity which has seen Trinidad and Tobago become the world's Leading Methanol Exporter, the world's Leading Ammonia Exporter and North Amer- ica's Leading LNG Exporter. Go to another major aspect of Trinidad and Tobago's energy industry, the gas industry has been growing at the rate of 10% per year since 1988, and is showing no signs of slowing down just yet. Judging by these standards, you could be


forgiven for thinking that Trinidad and Tobago might be intending to go it alone. On the con- trary Trinidad and Tobago perfectly understands that no man is an island, and has already been taking the necessary steps to ensure that all


New European Economy


areas of the energy industry are developed with a truly global perspective in mind. Recently the Energy Chamber signed an


agreement for close cooperation with French Guiana. This memorarum of understanding will help to forge partnerships and joint venture arrangements with businesses in French Guiana. With Guiana's status as an overseas French ter- ritory and therefore a member of the European Union, this relationship is set to benefit Trinidad and Tobago just as much as it will Guiana. Fur- thermore, a recent cooperation agreement for energy development with Grenada, the first of its kind with another CARICOM member, has just been signed and will lead to development of the region's natural resources on a suistainable basis. And this is not only a one-way street. Most recently, the Malaysia External Trade Develop- ment


Corporation has been encouraging


Malaysian companies to exporters to look to Trinidad and Tobago for potential opportunities. FDI for the Future


Whilst medium term economic growth dy- namics and political stability will continue to de- termine the decisions of foreign direct investors, another viable option for the investor in Trinidad and Tobago is its fast emerging renewable en- ergy market.


As Kevin Ramnarine, Minister of Energy


at the Ministry of Energy and Energy Affairs re- cently stated, "We are aware [therefore] of the need to align domestic energy policy with the needs of a world that is facing challenges of climate change, energy security and water security. In light of the severe consequences to the global climate, we must find ways to incorporate a diversity of energy sources in our national energy mix.“


And such a serious approach to the re-


sponsibility of Trinidad and Tobago’s energy se- curity is nothing new. Back in November 2008, the Cabinet of the Government of Trinidad and Tobago agreed upon establishing a Renewable Energy Committee, which was launched on February 13th 2009. Within the Terms some very clear guidelines which helped to identify exactly how Trinidad and Tobago should ap- proach applications and research activities into renewable energy were laid out, which would simoultaneously act to strengthen and develop the various renewable energy industry sectors. From PV solar power, solar thermal energy, wind energy, wave energy and biotech, no stone in the renewable energy industry has been left unturned.


Then in May of 2010, the Energy Chamber


of Trinidad and Tobago launched its "Energy In- dustry Competency Development Initiative" (EICDI) as an industry-wide initiative which aims to identify and raise the overall compe- tency of the energy sector workforce in Trinidad and Tobago. The EICDI is supported through a grant from the European Union-funded Corpo- ration for Development Enterprise, which has enabled some of the most highly certified and competant workforce to offer their technical ex- pertise and provide investors with the assurance that technical competancies in the energy sector of Trinidad and Tobago are amongst the very best in the world. More recently, the Ministry of Energy and Energy Affairs have been collabo- rating with the Ministry of Education to deliver ongoing intense training sessions on Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency. From a geological standpoint, Trinidad and


Tobago provides clear advantages for solar power and geothermal energy. Trinidad and To- bago’s Solaris Global Energy Ltd has just em- barked on a solar power joint-venture with Barbadian parent company Solaris Energy Ltd, which will see Trinidad and Tobago and Barba- dos producing state of the art photovoltaic sys- tems and solar water heaters together; another clear example of how Trinidad and Tobago sees collaboration between other Caribbean countries as an integral part of achieving renewable en- ergy dependency in the future. Along with Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago is one of only two Caribbean Community coun- tries which are currently spending less than €12 billion per year on energy imports, and Trinidad and Tobago is constantly looking at new ways in which to reduce domestic dependency on fossil fuels. Whilst it still remains to be seen exactly how quickly the geothermal sector will develop, it would still be safe to say that with so much on the horizon, even the most ardent environmen- tal enthusiast would be impressed with the measures that Trinidad and Tobago is taking to make the transition to clean and green. And for those who are not yet quite con- vinced, they could do well to remember that it is not so much about the road which you have been down, but the road which you are willing to travel along in the future. This is what deter- mines your final destination. And when Trinidad and Tobago reaches that destination, there might be more than a few people surprised to find out that the leader in conventional energy has just become the leader in renewable energy.


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