The National Gas Company of Trinidad and Tobago Limited (NGC) has finalised a landmark deal to acquire a 20% participating interest in the Manakin Field, strengthening the country’s position in one of the Western Hemisphere’s most unique energy assets, the cross-border Manakin-Cocuina gas reservoir.
The agreement, signed with BP Trinidad and Tobago LLC (bpTT), gives NGC a 20% stake in the Block 5(b) Production Sharing Contract, the license area covering the Manakin Field. Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar announced the deal at the Diplomatic Centre on Monday, August 10, 2026.
The timing carries a notable historical echo: it was during Persad-Bissessar’s first term as Prime Minister that Trinidad and Tobago and Venezuela signed the original unitisation agreement for the field, back on February 26, 2015. That agreement paved the way for joint development of the reservoir, which straddles the maritime boundary between the two countries.
With this latest acquisition, Manakin-Cocuina becomes the only unitised, cross-border gas reservoir in the Western Hemisphere where both nations have reached agreement to develop the entire shared resource. NGC already held a 20% interest in the Cocuina side of the field but previously had no stake in the Manakin portion, which lies within Trinidad and Tobago’s own territorial waters. By matching its Manakin interest to its existing Cocuina stake, NGC has aligned its position across the full unitised field. The company’s interest in Manakin has been placed under its subsidiary, NGC Exploration and Production Limited (NGC EPL).
NGC Chairman Gerald I. Ramdeen called the deal a major milestone for the state-owned company, saying the Manakin-Cocuina volumes offer a real chance to shore up domestic gas supply. He argued that NGC had for too long remained satisfied with its role as merely a pipeline operator, and described the acquisition as the fulfillment of a vision championed by the board and by acting NGC President Edmund Subryan.
Ramdeen credited the Prime Minister’s leadership with empowering NGC’s board and management to finalize the joint operating and farm-out agreements needed to bring the Manakin deal together. He said the acquisition broadens NGC’s footprint in the upstream sector, adding to the company’s role in the energy industry and the wider economy.
He also pointed to NGC’s decades-long relationship with bp as central to getting the negotiations across the line, framing the two companies as partners in advancing the country’s energy security and economic standing. Looking ahead, Ramdeen said NGC intends to keep pushing for Trinidad and Tobago to reclaim its status as the region’s top energy economy, positioning the company as a key player in helping the government responsibly develop the nation’s hydrocarbon resources for current and future generations.
The deal was formalized in a signing between Ramdeen and David Campbell, President of bp Latin America and the Caribbean. Also present were Karissa Bissoon, bpTT’s Vice President of Communications and External Affairs, and Oresa Charles, bpTT’s Managing Counsel.