The Government of Grenada has formally proposed the establishment of a trilateral oil and gas coordination commission involving Venezuela and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, as part of efforts to delimit maritime boundaries and develop its nascent offshore hydrocarbon industry.

For Grenada – which is seeking to ramp up exploration activities alongside its resource-rich neighbors – the mandate is to define clear maritime zones for leasing and exploration and provide legal certainty for potential investors.

Governance Complexity and Hydrocarbon Opportunity

Emerging hydrocarbon jurisdictions such as Grenada face a dual challenge: an opportunity to monetise offshore resources and the need to resolve governance, legal and boundary issues upfront.

Unresolved maritime delimitations can deter investment, heighten risk and complicate environmental and regulatory oversight.

In the broader Caribbean context, where multiple small states lie in close proximity and are moving into oil and gas, establishing transparency, clear licensing, revenue-management frameworks and boundary certainty becomes a competitive differentiator.

For Grenada, the move signals that its authorities recognise the imperative of creating an investment-ready hydrocarbon frontier.

 While Grenada has no proven oil production, the island has seen exploration activity: in 2017 the Nutmeg-2 well was logged by Global Petroleum Group (GPG) offshore Grenada, and in 2024 a 38-year production sharing agreement covering about 7,500 km² of offshore blocks was announced between GPG and Nigeria’s Oceangate Oil and Gas Engineering.

Beyond its local significance, the commission’s initiative reflects a broader regional trend: Caribbean nations are increasingly viewing energy resource development as both an engine for economic growth and a governance challenge.

This shift underscores a growing recognition of the need for stronger institutional frameworks and greater regional cooperation in managing energy, governance and maritime space.

What lies ahead for Grenada will hinge on the commission’s ability to gain political backing from all three countries and establish a clear roadmap for boundary demarcation and investment readiness.

Equally critical will be the government’s capacity to implement transparent regulatory and fiscal frameworks that meet international standards and inspire investor confidence.

For a small state entering the offshore energy space, clarity, cooperation and institutional strength will determine whether early potential translates into exploration and discovery. -OGN/TradeArabia News Service