BP to sell 20% stake in Venezuela's Cocuina gas field to Trinidad's NGC, sources say

HOUSTON: BP has agreed to sell ‌a 20% stake ⁠in the ⁠Venezuelan portion of the cross-border Cocuina-Manakin natural gas field to Trinidad and Tobago's state-owned ​National Gas Company (NGC), two sources with knowledge of the matter said on Monday.

Trinidad and ​Tobago Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar is expected to announce the deal later on Monday, the sources said. The agreement comes less than four months ​after Venezuela granted BP a license to develop ⁠the field.

The ‌Cocuina-Manakin field, which contains 1 trillion cubic feet of natural gas reserves, straddles the maritime boundary between Trinidad and Tobago ⁠and Venezuela, with the Cocuina section forming part of Venezuela's undeveloped Deltana Platform gas project. NGC already holds a 20% stake of the Manakin portion on the Trinidad side.


Venezuela's oil ministry, BP and NGC did not immediately reply to requests for comment. BP and NGC have agreed to market 70% of the project's gas to Atlantic LNG, which operates Latin America's largest liquefied natural gas ‌export facility, according to the sources. The complex has struggled in recent years due to declining domestic natural gas supplies in Trinidad, which has constrained ⁠output and forced the closure of one of its four trains. BP owns a 45% stake in Atlantic LNG, while NGC holds 10%. Shell owns the remaining 45%. Development at Cocuina-Manakin is progressing toward a final investment decision, which the sources expect by the end of the year. The remaining 30% of produced natural gas at Cocuina-Manakin will be used in petrochemicals. (Reporting by Curtis Williams in Houston; Additional reporting by Deisy Buitrago in Caracas; Editing by Nathan Crooks and Nia Williams)