Although Washington-Caracas diplomatic relations remain tense, energy companies that have left “open cases” in Venezuela aspire that they will soon be exempted from US sanctions.
In this context, Shell is preparing to restart preliminary work on a Venezuelan offshore natural gas field. This concerns the Dragon field, which is expected to supply neighboring Trinidad and Tobago. This move aligns with Shell’s belief that the Trump administration will issue new licenses that will exempt this specific project from the sanctions against Venezuela.
At the same time, BP is seeking to restore its own license for the development of the Venezuelan side of the Manakin-Cocuina natural gas field, which crosses the Venezuela-Trinidad and Tobago maritime border.
It is recalled that, last April, the White House revoked oil and natural gas licenses in Venezuela, in an effort to escalate pressure against Caracas. However, in July the Trump administration issued a limited license to Chevron to restart oil production and exports from the South American country.
Under this prism, analysts estimate that the US will soon make similar decisions for other energy companies, which are involved in natural gas projects that will benefit Trinidad and Tobago.
