Gov’t’s careful refinery balancing act

2026-03-27 - 01:33

Since the closure of T&T’s only oil refinery on November 30, 2018, there has been significant public discussion about the Pointe-a-Pierre facility and whether the previous administration took the right decision in choosing to cease its operations and create four new state-owned companies to replace Petrotrin. In outlining reasons for the refinery’s closure, former finance minister Colm Imbert, in a statement to Parliament on September 20, 2019, and referencing billions of dollars in losses annually, said, “The refinery was plagued by high and increasing debt; low productivity levels; escalating manpower costs; and an expenditure pattern of habitually surpassing its earnings and income.” In that speech, Mr Imbert outlined a two-stage bidding process: In Stage 1, companies from around the world were invited to submit expressions of interest, which attracted 77 potential bidders. That process led to a short list of five companies that included Patriotic Energies and Technologies Company, an entity established by the Oilfields Workers Trade Union (OWTU), which represented a majority of the workers of Petrotrin. After further assessment by an evaluation committee, Cabinet selected Patriotic Energies, based mainly on its proposal that included an upfront cash payment of US$700 million for the refinery assets. As a result of its inability to secure the US$700 million financing, the Patriotic bid lapsed, but the initial selection process chosen by the previous administration cannot be faulted. OWTU’s role is important because Ozzi Warwick, a high-ranking union officer, on Wednesday confirmed that Patriotic Energies had partnered with Italian company Tecnimont Services, which had earlier announced it was awarded a US$50 million contract to conduct a technical and integrity assessment of the refinery’s units and equipment and to develop a rehabilitation study. While Minister of Energy and Energy Industries, Dr Roodal Moonilal, made it clear Tecnimont’s involvement was not with the Government but with Patriotic Energies, the announcement by the Milan-based company raises several questions. These include: * On whose authority did Patriotic Energies enter into an arrangement with Tecnimont to conduct an asset integrity assessment of the refinery? * Would other companies currently interested in acquiring or leasing the refinery be doing the same? * Who are the investment partners that Mr Warwick said “will be disclosed at the appropriate time,” which have agreed to underwrite the US$50 million cost of Tecnimont’s project, what assurances has the OWTU given to the investors and are they known to the Government? It is clear that by partnering with Tecnimont to conduct a study essential to restarting the refinery, the OWTU is seeking to place itself at the front of the line of potential bidders for the billion-dollar asset. It is also reasonable to assert that Government owes the OWTU more than a debt of gratitude for its assistance during the 2025 General Election in galvanising the working-class base in Point Fortin and La Brea, two constituencies that had long been strongholds of the now opposition People’s National Movement. In fact, it is plain to see the trade union’s role in this Government, in which its former executive, Ernesto Kesar, is now the Point Fortin MP and Minister in the Ministry of Energy. However, Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar has also pledged allegiance to the United States and President Donald Trump, and it is noteworthy that American energy giant Chevron expressed an interest in the refinery shortly after the recent Shield of the Americas Summit in Florida. Therefore, in selecting an operator for the refinery, Mrs Persad-Bissessar may be forced to choose between her local allies and her US strategic partners.