Trinidad’s National Gas Company, PDVSA, and PDVSA Gas plan to partner with Shell to develop the Dragon field. Credit: Maria Lupan on Unsplash.

Venezuela is set to hold talks again with Trinidad and Tobago pertaining to the joint development of the long-stalled Dragon offshore natural gas field, reported Reuters citing three sources familiar with the matter.

The meeting is scheduled for mid-June 2023 in Caracas, Venezuela.

Go deeper with GlobalData

Data Insights

The gold standard of business intelligence.

Find out more

Related Company Profiles

View all

In March 2023, officials from both the countries signed confidentiality agreements needed to form a negotiation framework.

This follows the issuance of a two-year license by the US to Trinidad and Tobago in January 2023 to commence the Dragon project development following lengthy appeals by Trinidad and certain Caribbean neighbours.

The license allows Trinidad to undertake business related to the Dragon field with Venezuela’s heavily sanctioned state-run oil company Petroleos de Venezuela (PDVSA).

The PDVSA-owned Dragon project, which is located along the maritime border of Venezuela and Trinidad and Tobago, was scheduled to start production over a decade ago.

How well do you really know your competitors?

Access the most comprehensive Company Profiles on the market, powered by GlobalData. Save hours of research. Gain competitive edge.

Company Profile – free sample

Thank you!

Your download email will arrive shortly

Not ready to buy yet? Download a free sample

We are confident about the unique quality of our Company Profiles. However, we want you to make the most beneficial decision for your business, so we offer a free sample that you can download by submitting the below form

By GlobalData
Visit our Privacy Policy for more information about our services, how we may use, process and share your personal data, including information of your rights in respect of your personal data and how you can unsubscribe from future marketing communications. Our services are intended for corporate subscribers and you warrant that the email address submitted is your corporate email address.

However, US sanctions as well as lack of capital, delayed the production start of the field.

The Dragon project is expected to start gas flow in two years if negotiations materialise between Trinidad and Venezuela.

As per the estimates, the Dragon field holds up to 4.2 trillion cubic feet of gas.

Trinidad and Tobago Energy Minister Stuart Young was cited by the news agency as saying that Trinidad’s National Gas Company, PDVSA, and PDVSA Gas will partner with Shell to develop the Dragon field.

Last week, US Assistant Secretary of State for Energy Resources Geoffrey Pyatt was cited by Reuters as saying to local media in Trinidad that any license extension will “depend on Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro and what happens in Venezuela”.