Government estimates the cost related to clean-up and other services paid for following the Tobago oil spill earlier this year could be in the vicinity of 14-20 million US Dollars.
Minister of Energy and Energy Industries, Stuart Young, told reporters at a news briefing Monday, the Ministry is awaiting claims to be submitted from the Tobago House of Assembly before working out the cost to tax payers to address the February 9th spill.
Young said in 2001 Trinidad and Tobago signed on to an international convention relating to civil liability in the case of oil pollution.
Contributions to this fund were made but this payment stopped when the Petrotrin refinery closed.
He said the international fund was contacted, submissions were made recently in Britain and request done for access to funding to cover reasonable claims put forward.
Two officials, the director and claims manager from the IOPC fund will arrive in Trinidad and Tobago soon to do follow up work with the government in this regard.