00:00Within a week of having not attended the Energy Chamber of Trinidad and Tobago's
00:042026 Energy Conference in Port of Spain,
00:07confirmation that Prime Minister Kamala Posad-Basasa
00:10will be participating in the Caribbean Energy Week Conference in Suriname.
00:15On its website, Caribbean Energy Week, CEW2026 says it has confirmed
00:20Trinidad and Tobago's Prime Minister Kamala Posad-Basasa as a keynote speaker.
00:25The Caribbean Energy Week's website further said that
00:28Prime Minister Posad-Basasa's participation in its conference
00:31underscores the country's pivotal role in shaping the Caribbean energy landscape
00:37and signals CEW's emergence as the must-attend forum for investors,
00:43operators and governments seeking high-impact opportunities in the region.
00:47Prime Minister Posad-Basasa, Energy Minister Dr. Rural Mudilal
00:51and the rest of the Cabinet did not attend the Energy Chamber's conference
00:55at a hired regency in Port of Spain.
00:57The Prime Minister declared the Energy Chamber and their energy conference to be a farce.
01:03Prime Minister Posad-Basasa called on the Energy Chamber to quote
01:06use some of their store money that they extracted from small businesses
01:10and contractors to pay for it, end quote.
01:13A direct reference to the Safe to Work program which the Energy Chamber has committed
01:18to reflect, review and make changes as needed.
01:22Prime Minister Posad-Basasa said the state energy companies have a mandate
01:25to remove store certification as a prerequisite for qualifying for work in their companies.
01:31Energy Minister Muninal announced last week that after widespread consultation with the energy companies,
01:37a decision had been arrived at to discontinue the store requirement and revert to the ISO codes.
01:42The Energy Chamber of Trinidad and Tobago had said its purpose is and always has been
01:47to work with the government of the day in order to create the best conditions
01:51to ensure the growth of this sector which sits at the heart of Trinidad and Tobago's continued prosperity.
01:58The Caribbean Energy Week's website quoted the Project Director at Energy Capital and Power
02:02as having said that, Prime Minister Posad-Basasa's confirmation as a keynote speaker
02:07at the conference in Suriname highlights Trinidad and Tobago's strategic importance
02:12and reinforces CEW as the place where capital meets opportunity across the Caribbean energy sector.
02:19The CEW noted that in 2025, the government of Trinidad and Tobago awarded a major
02:24ultra-deep water exploration block to ExxonMobil, marking the company's return after two decades
02:31and opening the door to potential investments of more than $20 billion.
02:36The Caribbean Energy Week conference takes place in Suriname from March 30th to April 1st.
02:42Jewel Brown, TV6 News.
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