By Sue-Ann Wayow

TRINIDAD and Tobago stands to benefit from approximately US$1 billion from a deepwater development project involving Woodside Energy.

But, it stands to benefit from that amount only after Cabinet approved a new note to correct an error made from a previous one signed earlier this year by the then People’s Nationa Movement (PNM) government.

Energy Minister Dr Roodal Moonilal said the error was actually pointed out by Woodside Energy.

Speaking at the post-Cabinet media briefing on Thursday, Dr Moonilal noted that the error was made when the note was submitted by former energy minister Stuart Young and signed and approved by a Cabinet that consisted of current Opposition Leader Pennelope Beckles and opposition senators including Faris Al-Rawi and Foster Cummings.

If it had proceeded as signed, Trinidad and Tobago would have missed out on TT$7 billion dollars, he said.

Dr Moonilal said he has asked for a complete investigation into the incident by the Ministry of Energy and Energy Industries “as to how an error, a mistake, a miscalculation could take place with a pricing matrix that allows a government to lose a billion United States dollars almost $7 billion Trinidad and Tobago dollars in the life of a project.”

“How can a mistake like that take place? he asked.

Dr Moonilal said it was understandable that there were human errors in lesser important things such as notes, documents.

But he said,  “This is not a small error.”

Lifting the amended Cabinet note, he said, “By passing one note of the Cabinet, we have just earned $7 billion Trinidad and Tobago dollars.”

Dr Moonilal added when people ask “where the money coming from” he answered, “It’s in correcting the mistakes of Stuart Young and others.”

Dr Moonilal explained the rationale for the amended Cabinet note that involved a profit sharing contract with Australian energy company Woodside Energy for a particular block.

“This block was awarded over the years to Woodside Energy and it is the intention here that Woodside Energy in collaboration with bp would have entered into discussion for the contract for the development of this field.”

He said when government changed after the April 28 general election, it was discovered that Young brought a note to Cabinet in January of this year.

Young brought a note asking the then Cabinet to agree to the production sharing contract which was agreed to and involved the ministry on behalf of the government, Woodside Energy and bpTT.

Dr Moonilal said, “It was only discovered in April 2025, that the note taken to Cabinet and approved contained a detrimental matrix involving costing and returns to the government and the people of Trinidad and Tobago by way of profit share.”

According to Dr Moonilal, the share to government was reduced between 20 to 30  per cent.

On Thursday, Dr Moonilal said, “Today, we approved a new natural gas, price class structure and matrix that gave the government of Trinidad and Tobago, at the lowest end, 10 per cent increase and at the highest end, 20 per cent increase in our revenue from that particular project.”