Pointe-à-Pierre ( ) is a town in

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago (, ), officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. Consisting of the main islands Trinidad and Tobago, and numerous much smaller islands, it is situated south of ...

. It lies north of

San Fernando San Fernando may refer to: People *Ferdinand III of Castile (c. 1200–1252), called ''San Fernando'' (Spanish) or ''Saint Ferdinand'', King of Castile, León, and Galicia Places Argentina *San Fernando de la Buena Vista, city of Greater Buenos ...

and south of

Claxton Bay Claxton Bay is a community in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. It is located in Central Trinidad, south of Couva and Chaguanas and north of San Fernando and is administered by the Couva–Tabaquite–Talparo Regional Corporation. Olympic cycli ...

. It is most famous as the site of the country's largest (and now, only)

oil refinery An oil refinery or petroleum refinery is an industrial process plant where petroleum (crude oil) is transformed and refined into useful products such as gasoline (petrol), diesel fuel, asphalt base, fuel oils, heating oil, kerosene, lique ...

which used to be run by

Petrotrin Petroleum Company of Trinidad and Tobago Limited (Petrotrin) was a state-owned oil company in Trinidad and Tobago. Its principal activities were the exploration, development and production of hydrocarbons in addition to the manufacturing and mark ...

, the state-owned

oil company The petroleum industry, also known as the oil industry or the oil patch, includes the global processes of hydrocarbon exploration, exploration, extraction of petroleum, extraction, oil refinery, refining, Petroleum transport, transportation (of ...

. The town was built for and is populated by employees of the company. Facilities provided for the residents include a primary school, a yacht club and a staff club equipped with a pool, tennis courts and squash courts (and in the mid-1960s an 18-hole golf course and a secondary school, of which only the golf course remains). The oil refinery was originally built by

Trinidad Leaseholds Limited Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands of Trinidad and Tobago. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is often referred to as the southernmos ...

(TLL) and expanded by

Texaco Texaco, Inc. ("The Texas Company") is an American Petroleum, oil brand owned and operated by Chevron Corporation. Its flagship product is its Gasoline, fuel "Texaco with Techron". It also owned the Havoline motor oil brand. Texaco was an Indepe ...

. It was transferred to Trintoc when the government purchased the land-based assets of Texaco Trinidad Limited, and then incorporated into Petrotrin. The town is also the home of the world-famous

Pointe-à-Pierre Wild Fowl Trust Founded in 1966, the Pointe-à-Pierre Wild Fowl Trust is a not for profit environmental non-government organisation dedicated to environmental education and the conservation of wetlands and waterfowl. Located in Pointe-à-Pierre, Trinidad and Tobago ...

, a wildlife reserve for

waterfowl Anseriformes is an order of birds also known as waterfowl that comprises about 180 living species of birds in three families: Anhimidae (three species of screamers), Anseranatidae (the magpie goose), and Anatidae, the largest family, which in ...

located within the secured premises of the Petrotrin oil refinery. Pointe-à-Pierre is separated from

Marabella Marabella is a former town in southern Trinidad, between San Fernando (to the south) and Pointe-à-Pierre (to the north). Early 19th-century maps highlighted it as Marabella Junction because of the railway intersection to Williamsville and othe ...

by the

Guaracara River The Guaracara River, located in south Trinidad, runs westward approximately 30 km long, out of the Central Range and drains into the Gulf of Paria. It forms the boundary between the city of San Fernando (to the south) and the Couva-Tabaquite-Tal ...

and from

Gasparillo Gasparillo is a settlement in southern Trinidad. It lies east of Pointe-à-Pierre and northeast of San Fernando. The population is 16,426. The name Gasparillo is applied not only to Gasparillo area, but also the surrounding communities including ...

by the

Sir Solomon Hochoy Highway The Sir Solomon Hochoy Highway, sometimes referred to as SHH, is the major north–south highway on the island of Trinidad, in Trinidad and Tobago. It runs for 35.6 km (22.1 mi). It connects Chaguanas with Gandhi Village, Debe. It meets the U ...

. It lies on the

Gulf of Paria The Gulf of Paria ( ; es, Golfo de Paria) is a shallow (180 m at its deepest) semi-enclosed inland sea located between the island of Trinidad (Republic of Trinidad and Tobago) and the east coast of Venezuela. It separates the two countries ...

and is an important port for the export and import of

petroleum Petroleum, also known as crude oil, or simply oil, is a naturally occurring yellowish-black liquid mixture of mainly hydrocarbons, and is found in geological formations. The name ''petroleum'' covers both naturally occurring unprocessed crud ...

products. At the southern edge of Pointe-à-Pierre lies

Guaracara Park Guaracara Park is a cricket and football ground owned and operated by Trinidad and Tobago's state enterprise that primarily deals with the refining of crude petroleum, Petrotrin. It is located within the confines of their oil refinery at Pointe-� ...

, known for its cricket matches.

Notable people

Stephen Ames Stephen Michael Ames (born April 28, 1964) is a professional golfer formerly of the PGA Tour, who now plays on the PGA Tour Champions. The biggest win of his career was at The Players Championship in 2006. He holds dual citizenship of Trinidad an ...

, golfer *

Floella Benjamin Floella Karen Yunies Benjamin, Baroness Benjamin, (born 23 September 1949GRO Register of Marriages: SEP 1980 14 0207 LAMBETH – Keith D. Taylor=Floella K.Y. Benjamin) is a Trinidadian-British actress, singer, presenter, author, businesswoman, ...

, actress and TV presenter *

Dale de Neef Dale Nicholas de Neef (born 21 March 1956) is a Trinidadian-born Scottish former cricketer. de Neef was born in British Trinidad at Pointe-à-Pierre in March 1956. He was educated in Trinidad at St Peter's School, before emigrating to England ...

, cricketer * David Jenkins, sprinter *

Trevor McDonald Sir Trevor McDonald (born George McDonald; 16 August 1939) is a Trinidadian-British newsreader and journalist, best known for his career as a news presenter with ITN. McDonald was knighted in 1999 for his services to journalism. Career ...

, news presenter

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pointe-A-Pierre Populated places in Trinidad and Tobago Ports and harbours of Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad (island) Gulf of Paria