In Brief
- Cabinet Said ‘sí’: Energy Minister Dr Roodal Moonilal mocked the former PNM administration during the budget debate, revealing they approved a Dragon gas metering agreement written entirely in Spanish.
- Dragon Gas Still on Track: Despite identifying ‘significant weaknesses’ in the previous administration’s arrangements, Moonilal assured the public that the government is aiming for first gas by late 2027 or early 2028.
- A Legacy of Tragedy: Moonilal strongly criticised the PNM’s energy record, citing the Paria and NiQuan tragedies and highlighting undocumented ministerial trips to Venezuela.
- Regional Energy Hub: Announcing new regional partnerships, Moonilal noted that T&T will collaborate with Barbados on proposed hydrocarbon blocks and that Phoenix Park Gas Processors Limited will operate Guyana’s natural gas liquids facility.
By Prior Beharry
The entire People’s National Movement (PNM) cabinet said “sí” (Spanish for yes) when former energy minister Stuart Young brought a document written in Spanish concerning the metering of the Dragon gas field between Venezuela and Trinidad and Tobago.
This was a quip made by current Energy Minister Dr Roodal Moonilal that brought tremendous laughter from the government benches during the 2026/2027 Budget debate in the Lower House on Saturday.
Stressing that the Kamla Persad-Bissessar government is committed to the Dragon project, Moonilal said that a PNM cabinet document regarding the metering of Dragon gas was written entirely in Spanish.
Moonilal said, “Mr Speaker, you know what’s shocking about this? They said appendix two is the agreement for metering.
“Metering is an important agreement, arrangements made pursuant to these really significant mega gas projects, because it really allows you to have in law the process for metering, the technical specifications of instruments, the calibration, if you call it that, the right of inspectors to go on a platform to look at the, you know, the figures to see, because nobody want to be in a gas arrangement, to put it simply, and somebody pulling wool over somebody else’s eye, and instead of 100, it’s really 50, and so on, so on.
“So metering and an agreement on metering is critical. Mr Speaker, in this cabinet, they attached appendix two. When we look at appendix two in the cabinet document, it is an appendix in Spanish. I have it in my hand. ‘Republica Bolivia… Venezuela, and so on.’ It is in Spanish, and you know, there’s a signatory to this. There’s a date, I’m sure, on it. Hear this now. Hear this.
“There is an agreement. Imagine the cabinet received, the cabinet received a document in Spanish. It’s signed by a Venezuelan minister, I believe, Mr Ruz, or something like that. But Trinidad and Tobago is signed by Stuart Richard Young. What? In Spanish. In Spanish.
“Now you went to the cabinet to tell the cabinet, approve the report in Spanish. The entire cabinet say ‘sí.'”
Laughter erupted in the House.
The Dragon gas deal is a landmark cross-border energy agreement between Trinidad and Tobago and Venezuela, aimed at developing the offshore Dragon gas field located in Venezuelan territorial waters. Under the partnership—which involves energy giant Shell as the operator alongside Trinidad’s state-owned National Gas Company (NGC)—natural gas will be extracted and piped directly to Trinidad for processing into liquefied natural gas (LNG) and petrochemicals. The Dragon gas field is estimated to hold approximately 4.2 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of natural gas reserves.
Moonilal, reading from an Express story dated 24 September 2026 which reported on a meeting between Persad-Bissessar and Venezuela interim President Delcy Rodriquez in New York, said, “And the headline was, ‘Delcy says, I love you Kamla’.Take that. Take that. And there was no Congaline.”
Moonilal in a jab against Young said, “Forty trip(s) and we never hear ‘I love you Stuartie’. So Mr. Speaker, that will hurt them, obviously.”
Despite these “significant weaknesses,” Moonilal said the government was actively working with Venezuelan authorities and stakeholders.
He said, “We will move towards first gas by the fourth quarter of 2027, early 2028.”
Moonilal added that when he signs the upcoming Loran-Manatee metering agreement, “I will ensure when I sign that agreement, it is in English.”
In his contribution, the Oropouche East MP criticised the former People’s National Movement (PNM) administration’s handling of the energy sector, while announcing major new regional hydrocarbon partnerships with Barbados and Guyana.
Describing the Opposition’s response to the budget as “the weakest effort by an opposition in the history of this country,” Dr Moonilal accused former ministers of leaving behind a legacy of industrial tragedy, undocumented foreign trips, and bizarre bureaucratic blunders.
A ‘legacy’ of tragedy and missing records
He tied the previous administration to the Paria diving tragedy, stating, “The legacy is that they presided over the death of four workers at Paria in a pipeline. That is the legacy.”
He also mentioned the deadly NiQuan explosion under the PNM.
Moonilal said, “An attempt to contact the Trinidad and Tobago fire service was unsuccessful because the telephone number used was out of service.”
He stated that Young made “40 trips to Venezuela,” and many were “undocumented.”
Moonilal said, “The Ministry of Energy has reported that there is an absence of documentation on this.”
He added, “Where’s the note? Where’s the minute? Where’s the report? Absolutely nothing.”
Moonilal noted that “it was always dangerous for ministers and more so for a Prime Minister to travel on business” without public officers or technical support staff.
Expanding the Southern Caribbean Energy Hub
Moonilal announced strides in establishing Trinidad and Tobago as the energy hub of the Southern Caribbean.
Following recent engagements, including the celebration of the Mighty Sparrow attended by Barbadian Prime Minister Mia Mottley, Moonilal revealed that Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar officially wrote to Mottley.
He said, “Trinidad and Tobago will now partner with Barbados and intensify our dialogue concerning several of their proposed blocks.”
Moonilal said, “Trinidad and Tobago stands ready to collaborate in terms of reviewing available geological, geophysical, petroleum system information, identifying potential hydrocarbon plays.”
He added, “Phoenix Park Gas Processors Limited has been selected as the preferred operator and maintenance provider for Guyana’s natural gas liquids facility.”
“The Honourable Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago has made now another leap in the Caribbean and in the international community to partner with Barbados,” Moonilal said.
He concluded, “This is a policy of Trinidad and Tobago to become the energy hub of the Southern Caribbean. We are well on the way.”
