Trinidad and Tobago: Key Industries

Trinidad and Tobago's economy is built on oil and natural gas, whose extraction dates to commercial drilling in the early twentieth century and which by the twenty-first century made the country the largest oil and natural gas producer in the English-speaking Caribbean. Petrochemical manufacturing grew from this base, and by the 2010s Trinidad hosted eleven ammonia plants and seven methanol plants, ranking as the world's leading ammonia exporter and one of the largest methanol exporters. Point Lisas, on the west coast, developed into the country's main industrial and export hub for these products, alongside liquefied natural gas processed for export through Atlantic LNG's facilities at Point Fortin.

Energy remains central to the economy, contributing roughly 40 percent of GDP and about 80 percent of export earnings, even though the sector employs only a small share of the workforce directly. As of early 2026, natural gas production had continued a multiyear decline, averaging about 2,427 million standard cubic feet per day in the first quarter, a drop of roughly 4.5 percent from 2025 levels, as Trinidad's mature offshore fields produced less even as newer projects such as Manatee came online. Atlantic LNG's export terminals, with a combined capacity of about 12 million tonnes a year, exported closer to 9 million tonnes in 2025, reflecting the shortfall in feedstock gas.

To offset the decline, Trinidad and Tobago has pursued cross-border gas supply, including the Dragon field in Venezuelan waters, an estimated four trillion cubic feet of reserves that could supply up to 350 million cubic feet a day if development proceeds, though the project's progress depends on U.S. licensing decisions and conditions in Venezuela. The government has also promoted diversification beyond energy, expanding manufacturing in food and beverages, cement, and steel for regional Caribbean markets and encouraging growth in tourism, centered on Tobago's beaches and Trinidad's Carnival, along with a nascent creative-industries sector in film, music, and fashion.