Shell has authorised US-based engineering company McDermott to proceed with the development of its Manatee gas field development project.
Manatee Field is a conventional gas development located in shallow water off the east coast of Trinidad and Tobago and operated by Shell’s local subsidiary, Shell Trinidad and Tobago.
Shell Trinidad and Tobago has granted McDermott a limited notice to begin engineering, procurement, construction, and installation (EPCI) contract works for the Manatee project.
The scope of the Manatee project includes design, procurement, fabrication, transportation, installation, and commissioning of a wellhead platform, and offshore and onshore gas pipelines.
The EPCI contract works are subject to Shell reaching a final investment decision (FID).
Once commissioned, the Manatee gas field development project is expected to supply gas to both domestic and export markets from Trinidad and Tobago.
Trinidad and Tobago Energy Minister Stuart Young said: “I expect in a very short time frame I will hear about a FID (final investment decision) from Shell on Manatee.”
McDermott subsea and floating facilities senior vice president Mahesh Swaminathan said: “This award follows our successful delivery of the front-end engineering design for the Manatee gas field.
“It is a testament to McDermott’s integrated EPCI capabilities built over the last 100 years around the world including many successful projects in Trinidad and Tobago.
“We will again deliver for Shell, building on a partnership marked by trust, collaboration, and shared success, to execute this important project.”
The Manatee field is part of the Loran-Manatee field that lies alongside Trinidad and Tobago’s maritime boundary with Venezuela.
The field has an estimated resource of 10.04 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of natural gas, with 2.712tcf of gas within the Manatee portion.
In September this year, Shell filed an application with Trinidad and Tobago’s Environmental Management Authority (EMA), seeking environmental approvals for the Manatee project.
The British energy company plans to achieve the first gas from the project by the first quarter of 2028.
