Gas deal in the pipe

A new gas sales agreement has been signed between the National Gas Company of TT Ltd (NGC) and Caribbean Nitrogen Company Limited (CNC), approximately two and a half months after negotiations broke down back in January.

This was no April fools joke, as Newsday understands senior staff from both companies worked through the Easter weekend to ensure every last hurdle was overcome and a new contract signed on the afternoon of April 1 at NGC’s Couva head office.

On January 24, an estimated 400 workers were affected by CNC’s shutdown of its ammonia plant in Pt Lisas, following the expiry of its existing contract with NGC. CNC’s contract actually expired in October 2017 but NGC had extended it until December and again until the middle of January this year, to allow the ammonia plant to continue operating during negotiations for another long-term gas supply contract.

Fast-forward ten weeks and some initial public trading of words over who was at fault and there is now a new deal in place. In a joint statement issued on Easter Monday afternoon, NGC and CNC said they “have resolved all outstanding issues and reached agreement on the key commercial terms of a new gas sales contract, that are beneficial to both parties and to TT. The companies then reiterated their thanks to Energy Minister Franklin Khan and the Minister in the Office of the Prime Minister Stuart Young “for their respective roles in helping to bring these negotiations to a successful conclusion.”

“(We) look forward to working cooperatively in the best interest of all stakeholders and that of TT,” NGC and CNC stated. While the new contract was signed on Sunday afternoon, Newsday understands CNC began receiving gas on Monday. “NGC has been under a gas curtailment for the longest while,” a source told Newsday. “So when CNC came off, the other plants at Pt Lisas were getting their full quota. NGC now has to re-introduce CNC without adversely affecting the other plants.”

This is being done over the next few days, hence CNC is not expected to be fully operational until this Friday. Newsday was also informed that the final round of negotiations “was very amicable” because both parties just had to get some things sorted out before signing.