Shell Delays Aphrodite Gas Project in Trinidad

en.Wedoany.com Reported - In August, Shell delayed advancing the Aphrodite natural gas project offshore Trinidad and Tobago and released the first jack-up rig slot originally scheduled for drilling production wells at the project. Shell confirmed that negotiations with the National Gas Company of Trinidad and Tobago (NGC) on commercial terms for gas sales from the project are still ongoing, and the company will reassess the overall implementation schedule of the Aphrodite project. The project had previously targeted first gas in 2027; following the release of the rig slot, the original development timeline is now subject to adjustment.

Aphrodite is located in Block 5a in the East Coast Marine Area offshore Trinidad and Tobago, is 100% owned and operated by Shell, and the gas discovery was made in 2022. The project's planned production rate is approximately 100 million cubic feet per day. Shell made a final investment decision (FID) in June 2025, and its 2025 annual report shows that Aphrodite will be tied into Shell's existing subsea infrastructure, with gas transported to the Dolphin A platform. First production was originally planned for 2027, with peak production of approximately 18,400 barrels of oil equivalent per day.

Following the project's transition to the FID stage, Shell has initiated subsea engineering and procurement. In June 2025, Subsea7 was awarded the subsea engineering contract for the Aphrodite project, with a work scope including the transport and installation of subsea equipment at water depths of up to approximately 290 meters. Subsea7 classified the contract as "sizeable," corresponding to a contract value of approximately US$50 million to US$150 million; project management and engineering work will be handled by its Houston team, with offshore installation originally planned for 2027.

Shell's project portfolio, updated as of July 27, 2026, still lists Aphrodite among backfill gas projects under construction and scheduled to come online in 2026–2027, noting Shell's 100% stake. The release of the drilling rig slot comes after the project reached FID and the subsea installation contract was awarded, and the current adjustment directly affects production well drilling and the subsequent development timeline.

Commercial arrangements for Aphrodite gas sales remain a key condition for the project's continued advancement. NGC is the domestic gas aggregation and supply entity in Trinidad and Tobago, responsible for allocating gas to downstream industrial users and other markets; Shell and NGC have also previously established long-term gas sales contract relationships. The current round of negotiations for Aphrodite has not yet resulted in a new gas sales agreement, and Shell has only confirmed that negotiations are ongoing and that the first rig slot has been released.