Venezuela VP Delcy Rodriguez On Dragon Gas Deal: Kamla Leading T&T People ‘Off A Cliff’

Vice President of Venezuela and Minister of Energy, Delcy Rodriguez, is warning that Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar is leading the people of Trinidad and Tobago “off a cliff,” regarding the Dragon gas deal. She also said T&T will have to pay for “any molecule” of natural gas exported from Venezuela.

Speaking earlier today (Wednesday 22nd October, 2025) at the Venezuela Productiva 2030 Economic Forum, Rodriguez veered from her presentation to refer to the United States Treasury Department’s granting of an Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) licence to Trinidad, to negotiate with Venezuela for the development of the Dragon project.

She claimed that if Venezuela did not export gas to Trinidad, the country’s economy would collapse and that U.S. Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, had sold Persad-Bissessar a lie.

“She is deceiving your entire country, she is deceiving the business sector of Trinidad and Tobago, and they are going to be left out in the wind. They need the oil of Venezuela, and the only way is through the Government of Venezuela. There is no other way. Marco Rubio is not going to give the gas from Venezuela. You will see this sooner than later,” said Rodriguez.

Venezuela Vice President Delcy Rodriguez is warning that the United States is “deceiving” Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar over the new licence for exploration of the Dragon gas field.
She made the assertion during the Venezuela Productiva 2025 Business Expo forum in… pic.twitter.com/gnRe7BbYFd

— CNC3TV (@CNC3TV) October 22, 2025

T&T Attorney General John Jeremie held a Press Conference some weeks ago, in which he announced that the stalled gas deal for T&T and Venezuela to jointly develop the Dragon gas field had “come alive” again with the granting of the OFAC licence.

The Dragon gas field, located in Venezuelan waters near the maritime border, is estimated to hold between 3.2 trillion and 4.2 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. A previous license negotiated by the PNM administration was revoked in early April 2025. However, upon its successful election into Government, the UNC administration submitted a new application on 19th May, 2025, according to AG Jeremie. 

He did not disclose the licence’s financial terms when he made the announcement. While details of the license have not yet been confirmed, previous OFAC licences prohibited any cash payments to the Venezuelan Government for the project.

The OFAC license is the first in a three-tier approval process, which authorizes the U.S. and T&T Governments, as well as the National Gas Company of Trinidad and Tobago (NGC), energy giant Shell Plc, and Futura Clara Ltd, to engage in negotiations with the Government of Venezuela and Petróleos de Venezuela (PDVSA), for the development of the Dragon gas field.

The license also includes conditions designed to ensure that U.S. companies secure a commercial stake in the deal. This initial tier of the licence is set to expire in April 2026.

Rodriguez went on to state that Rubio was selling smoke and pregnant birds to Prime Minister Persad-Bissessar. “They are selling them the fake idea that they are going to take the gas from Venezuela to gift to Trinidad. Do you believe that is possible? I speak from here to the people of Trinidad and Tobago — the Prime Minister is leading you off a cliff when you believe Marco Rubio is going to give the gas from Venezuela.”

She continued, “The gas of Venezuela you must pay for, any molecule that is exported not only to Trinidad and Tobago but any neighboring country that we have in our plans, you must pay. That is international co-operation, that is trade relations. Everything else goes against nature, and it does not exist and you are being deceived.”

More on this as it becomes available.

[Source: Trinidad Express]