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Liquid Niugini LNG

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Liquid Niugini LNG is a natural gas liquefaction project in Papua New Guinea . It is developed by Liquid Niugini Gas Ltd, and owned by PNG LNG Inc., a Bahamas-based parent holding company.

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120-896: It is one of several natural gas projects in Papua New Guinea and is associated with the Hides gas field The LNG plant will be built adjacent to the oil refinery owned by InterOil near Port Moresby . The LNG plant will consist of one processing train with nominal capacity of 5 million tonnes with option to add a second train to increase total capacity up to 9 million tonnes of LNG and 1 million tonnes of natural gas liquids per year. It will be supplied with natural gas from Elk and Antelope gas and condensate fields by 910 mm (36 in) natural gas pipeline. The preliminary engineering and evaluation design work were done in spring 2007. The plant will use ConocoPhillips ' proprietary natural gas liquefaction technology (Optimized CascadeSM Process) and it

240-529: A 19.4% share. About US$ 800 million was contributed to the construction of the project and the mining rights. This payment was to be made following the FID. A concurrent phase in the project was the front end engineering Design (FEED) which raised the project's cost, which required the share to be financed by equity. As a result, the PNG government had to find US$ 1 billion when the FID was made on 12 August 2008. In early March 2009

360-555: A 22.8% stake in the gasfields and paid about US$ 900 million for participation. The money was sourced from equity bought by the PNG government and financed from a loan from the Swiss bank UBS . Oil Search contested Total's participation before a London court of arbitration. Oil Search claimed to have priority rights (pre-emptive rights) in buying into Interoil because of its acquisition of Pac LNG. Total continued to be present in Papua-LNG but at

480-525: A PDL (Petroleum Development License) and abolished the option of arbitration in case of a conflict. The minister stressed in parliament that these withdrawals were only applicable to Papua/LNG. A Petroleum Retention License extension was also awarded in February 2021. Such a license allows for project financing activities and also strategic market studies, which will be done separately by the participating companies or with other participants. The work programme for

600-506: A capital injection through the botched attempt to gain shares through the UBS loan. The agreement on Papua-LNG expected a shareholding of 22.25 percent in Papua LNG that is expected to be paid from the project's income. Ken Ail Kaepai of PNG University of Technology sketched the dilemma as follows: “Under this arrangement, the dividends will be delayed over more extended periods required for allowing

720-505: A defined timeframe." The energy companies were not willing to take that into consideration and talks broke down between government and the companies on 31 January 2020. Prime Minister Marape sounded confident that progress on the Papua LNG project with lead developer ExxonMobil would continue. Three new trains to convert natural gas into LNG were planned to treat the gas from Papua-LNG as well as from P’nyong. The energy companies wanted to only proceed with preliminary engineering and design for

840-528: A direct equity stake in the LNG venture." The latter was expected to be much more profitable: The government also expected to raise more money from the equity participation in LNG-PNG than from Oil Search dividends. It was expected that the revenue stream from the LNG project would redeem the loan. Arthur Somare was the government minister in charge of public companies (IPBC) and the LNG project. Morauta challenged Somare when

960-407: A leadership tribunal for Marape and O'Neill. The Commission found fifteen breaches of procedure. The most important breach may be that parliament was not asked to approve the loan as this was constitutionally required. Much of the loan was shrouded in mystery and there suspicions about parties benefiting themselves. The suspicions were warranted as there was a bridging loan of A$ 335 million covering

1080-476: A loan which was never tabled in Parliament. It was negotiated and signed behind closed doors by people with no experience in the complex world of international high finance." He criticised technicalities of the loan: "The loan was drawn half a year before it was needed for financing and this led to a loss of interest. Currency risk was not hedged either. The most fundamental criticism was that A longer running time of

1200-680: A non disclosure agreement with Twinza oil. He also insisted that the top management of the company would be resident in Port Moresby instead of flying in from Australia. The deadline was set at 9 September 2021. Twinza oil was not willing to comply. The CEO of Twinza oil left his job because of frustration with government negotiations in October 2021. The proposed benefits for the PNG government vary between 50 and 60% and are multifarious including corporation tax, production retained for local consumption, development levy etc. There are no precise indications of

1320-405: A number of non-binding statements of intent. His most important statement was that in the future, contracts would be made on the basis of a Production sharing agreement which would lead to early free cash flows in petroleum and mining contracts. Kua stated on return from Singapore that The Papua-LNG project would proceed as planned.In fact notiations were Broken off and preparation for the project

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1440-575: A partnership with ExxonMobil/Oil Search to develop the Hides gas fields. Somare's son won, but once PNG/LNG became operational, attention went to Interoil's Elk-Antelope Gas Field. The fields are located in a marshy area in the eastern margin of the Papuan Basin to the west of Port Moresby (90 km from the Gulf of Papua coast). The size of the gas field is certified at about 6.5 trillion cubic feet, compared to

1560-407: A policy of production sharing. He deplored the borrowing for equity from the past, but did not come out against equity ownership of the government. On the contrary: the statement left the possibility of 100% state ownership open. The Chamber of Mines deplored the proposals. It also queried whether government debt was due to participation in mining. It seemed that government policy on natural resources

1680-491: A reduced rate of 40% instead of 60%. Interoil remained with an interest of about 40% in the Elk-Antelope gas field. Oil Search made a bid for Interoil's remaining shares in the gas field for US$ 3 billion. OilSearch had to concede to ExxonMobil: they offered US$ 2.2.billion for the remaining shares of Interoil in the gasfield. However, Mulacek had been replaced by Michael Hession as CEO in 2013. Nevertheless, Mulacek challenged

1800-535: A shareholding in LNG PNG. This exchange came at a substantial cost of contracting and servicing a loan and an additional payment. The government of PNG has not acquired a shareholding in Papua-LNG through Oil Search despite the cost of contracting and servicing a loan plus unknown extra payments. The energy companies benefited from a capital injection in PNG LNG through the government's shareholding. Oil Search has benefitted from

1920-494: A shorter period. The interest was 5%. When the loan matured in 2014 the share price was around A$ 8.55 and IPIC wanted the shares as repayment for the loan. The PNG government sent a delegation to Abu Dhabi in an attempt to dissuade them and accept cash. They refused and the Oil Search shares were transferred from the PNG government to IPIC. The share price also fell back and PNG had to add US$ 70.8 million. This financial construction

2040-497: A significant improvement over the PNG LNG project: this Agreement provides earlier, less risky flows to the State, reduces the States financing burden to buys its shares, and provides some gas for domestic use at a discounted and fixed price. There are strong provisions for third party access to infrastructure and national content." However, the agreement was immediately controversial. Some of

2160-567: A single Australian administration though several laws remained in two territories and remain so, which can be complicating with provinces sitting on two sides of the otherwise extinct boundary. Port Moresby became the capital of the new combined territory and a focal point for the expansion of public services. Port Moresby was granted city status in 1972, with Oala Oala-Rarua becoming the first Lord Mayor. In September 1975, Papua New Guinea became an independent country with Port Moresby as its capital city. Prince Charles, Prince of Wales , represented

2280-420: A steady income stream irrespective of profitability. The faster the depreciation the less profit would have been made. Tax on interest or dividends would not be withheld, which meant the companies could export their income to a destination where little or no tax was paid without any taxation by the PNG government. Two of the participating companies – Total and ExxonMobil – would also have a steady income stream from

2400-423: A strong positive balance on the current account, which should have led to an increase in foreign exchange that never happened. Deputy Prime Minister Charles Abel criticised the benefits of natural resource projects for PNG. Abel collaborated with Minister of Mining Fabian Pok on the government negotiating team for the Papua-LNG project. He was content about the agreement: "We made compromises, but he considered it

2520-563: Is 70% debt financed. Oil Search had the management contract for the upstream facilities while ExxonMobil managed the gas liquefaction plant and loading bay. The latter facilities would be built at the same place near Port Moresby as installations serving LNG/PNG. The agreement contained an obligation to provide gas for domestic use (a reserved 5%) so that PNG is for 70 percent self-sufficient for electricity supply in 2030. The State and landowners are not obliged to pay for their equity (US$ 900 million) before revenues start coming in. Payment for

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2640-590: Is also home to the PNG Hunters , a rugby league team that compete in the majority Australian Queensland Cup . The 2015 Pacific Games was held in Port Moresby from 4 to 18 July 2015. In September 2009, the Pacific Games Council, at its meeting coinciding with the 2009 Pacific Mini Games , elected Port Moresby as the host of the 2015 Games. The final vote was 25–22 in favour of Port Moresby over Tonga to host. The 2015 Pacific Games involved 24 countries from

2760-469: Is estimated to be at 7.1 trillion cubic feet and Elk-Antelope at 6.43 trillion cubic feet. The development of this gas field would require relatively fewer expenses: the pipeline from Hides to the coast would only need to be extended inland. At the Caution Bay loading point it would need one extra train to condense the gas for shipping, which would mean building one extra train besides the two extra trains for

2880-464: Is expected to begin when the construction of Papua LNG is completed in 2228 and production could then start in 2232. Exxon Mobil declared that the agreement sets a clear framework for development, but it is not a guarantee that the project will go ahead. The Western Gas Project is the fourth LNG development. Central in this proposal are four drilled gas fields in the Western Province. Horizon oil

3000-404: Is expected to flow in 2024. In 2011 the FID was expected in the same year. In 2017 the first LNG exports were expected in either late 2020 or early 2021 The new dates are also speculative because the financial underpinning of the announced agreement is virtually absent. There is only a commitment of a small proportion of the necessary cash for construction. The cash paid for the gas field is for

3120-534: Is important to PNG's economy with US$ 2.95 billion in exports in 2020, and accounting for 5.25% of the GDP in 2019. On a global scale, PNG is a minor player, with 0.08% of world reserves In 2020, PNG was ranked 16th on the list of gas exporting countries. There are five LNG projects in PNG; only the Hides Project is fully operational. An agreement was made between the PNG government and a consortium of companies to develop

3240-565: Is located on the shores of the Gulf of Papua , on the south-western coast of the Papuan Peninsula of the island of New Guinea . The city emerged as a trade centre in the second half of the 19th century. During World War II , it was a prime objective for conquest by the Imperial Japanese forces during 1942–43 as a staging point and air base to cut off Australia from Southeast Asia and

3360-410: Is not fully linked, there are many internal flights to other towns, such as Lae and Madang , which have no direct road connection to Port Moresby. Papua New Guinea is rich in natural resources, which account for two thirds of its export earnings. Though PNG is filled with resources, the lack of development led foreign countries to take over some sites. Continuing foreign demand for PNG's resources led

3480-423: Is that the project will generate also much condensate, oil that comes with the gas extraction. The project has been the subject of a conflict with the government because permits were cancelled. This was solved amidst allegations of corruption. An inquiry concluded that nothing inappropriate had happened and the PNG government did not follow up the accusations. Pasca gas field is the first offshore gas project in

3600-472: Is the major partner in these. Most of these interests have been bought from Repsol , a Spanish company. The Chinese company Balang also bought interests in the fields from Repsol . Repsol maintained interest in the field. after selling off shares. Kumul Petroleum holdings , the PNG state company is another partner. Brent Emmer , the chief Executive Officer of Horizon declared in 2017 that pre-Feed studies (concept engineering and design were ready. It entails

3720-534: Is to be constructed by Bechtel . The project is expected to cost US$ 5 billion to US$ 7 billion. The first cargo of LNG is planned to be delivered in 2012. In December, 2009, Ex-Im Bank Directors approved US$ 3 billion in financing for the ExxonMobil -led project in December, 2009. PNG LNG Inc is owned equally by InterOil Corp., Merrill Lynch Commodities, Inc. , and Pacific LNG Operations Ltd. There are provisions for

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3840-694: The APEC summit in November 2018. However, there were concerns about security given the capital's reputation for violent crime. Prior to the arrival of Europeans to the region, it was inhabited by the Motu-Koitabu . The Motu were originally coastal dwellers, while the Koitabu lived more inland. There was significant intermarriage between these two groups. They were organized into units called iduhu , which are somewhat similar to clans. In 1883, Queensland attempted to annex

3960-458: The Americas . Due to its population and outsized influence compared to other cities in Papua New Guinea, Port Moresby may be regarded as a primate city . As of the 2011 census, Port Moresby had 364,145 inhabitants. An unofficial 2020 estimate gives the population as 383,000. The place where the city was founded has been inhabited by the Motu-Koitabu people for centuries. The first Briton to see it

4080-810: The International Cricket Council and is an associate member and has been a member of that body since 1973. It is also a member of the East Asia-Pacific Cricket Council . The city hosted the 2017 FIBA Melanesia Basketball Cup , where the Papua New Guinea national basketball team won the gold medal. The city is home to the Port Moresby Vipers rugby league team who play in the Papua New Guinea National Rugby League . The National football stadium

4200-451: The Papua Act which came into effect in 1906. The act transferred Papua, with Port Moresby as its capital, to direct Australian rule. From then until 1941 Port Moresby grew slowly. The main growth was on the peninsula, where port facilities and other services were gradually improved. The first butcher's shop and grocery opened in 1909, electricity was introduced in 1925, and piped water supply

4320-590: The Queen of Papua New Guinea at the celebrations. New government, intellectual and cultural buildings were constructed in the suburb of Waigani to supplement and replace those of downtown Port Moresby. They included those for government departments, including a National Parliament Building, which was opened in 1984 by Prince Charles and blends traditional design with modern building technology. The Papua New Guinea National Museum and National Library are in Waigani . A mansion

4440-443: The dry season covers the remaining six months. This is due to the south easterly trade winds running parallel to the coast, and the city being surrounded by high mountains. The average high temperatures range from 28 to 32 °C (82.4 to 89.6 °F) depending on time of year, while the average low temperature shows very little seasonal variation, hovering around the 23 °C (73.4 °F) mark. It tends to be slightly cooler in

4560-513: The "Pineapple Building") and the Central Government Offices. However, widespread restoration rather than demolition of long-disused office buildings has been highly active since the first decade of the 21st century. The legislative building before independence and the first parliament building is long-gone but the old court house in town Port Moresby remains, bearing its pre-independence label with its previous title. The population of

4680-511: The 2016 FIFA Under-20 Women's World Cup. Air Niugini , the national airline of Papua New Guinea, and Airlines PNG , the second biggest airline in the country, have their head offices on the grounds of Jacksons International Airport . The 1969 South Pacific Games , held from 13 to 23 August 1969 at Port Moresby, were the third South Pacific Games to be held. A total of 1,150 athletes participated. The 1991 South Pacific Games held from 7–21 September 1991 at Port Moresby and along Lae were

4800-456: The 2018 APEC meeting, brought a large number of world leaders to Port Moresby. There has been substantial building of housing, office towers, shopping malls and commercial establishments over much of the city. The waterfront area has been completely redeveloped with apartments, restaurants and shopping centres. Sporting facilities were upgraded significantly for the 2015 South Pacific Games, and further development took place in preparation for

4920-587: The Department of Petroleum, have been sidelined. Morauta distributed a letter from the Department of Energy to the Secretary of the Government, which demanded that a proper APDL be made with the necessary documentation about the field's size and its economic viability. Total should have provided ten documents that were absent or deficient, but they did not follow up on requests. The necessary information for decision making

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5040-547: The Elk-Antelope gas field. Synergies are expected. ExxonMobil has been the main actor in this field and as lead operator owns 49% That is including its subsidiary Ampolex. Oil Search was originally a partner in the project before it was bought by Santos. Santos has after absorbing Oil Search 28% interest. JX Nippon operates through Merlin Petroleum company, its subsidiary ,has a12.5% interest respectively. Exxon Mobil will work with

5160-470: The Extension includes technical activities in preparation for the front-end engineering and design work. A pre-Front End Engineering Design (FEED) program does not guarantee a permission for a FEED. The aim remains to announce a FEED in 2022 and a Final Investment Decision (FID) in 2023. Production is expected in 2017. The agreements reached have a peculiar mixture of being definite and being provisional. This

5280-405: The Gulf of Papua New Guinea. It entails a production platform as well as loading capacities offshore. Twinza oil holds the licence. The field is known since 1988 but the technical capacity to develop the field is according to Twinza recent. A prospecting permit was issued in 2011.The company has been very optimistic about the stage of preparation: pre FEED work is completed in 2020. Negotiations with

5400-480: The Hides gas field to export LNG to the Asian market. The project was completed in 2014 after rapidly completing planning and construction phases: When the proposals for an LNG facility in PNG were raised there were two factions in the cabinet: one headed by Prime Minister Michael Somare who advocated a partnership with InterOil to develop the Elk-Antelope gas field, and the other by his son Arthur Somare, who advocated

5520-529: The IPIC loan concluded; he criticised Arthur Somare's position as minister in charge of IPBC and the use of his position to monopolise negotiations about the loan. From the beginning, he criticised the mortgages of national assets (the government's shares in Oil Search). Morauta became the minister of IPBC in 2011 and reiterated his criticisms: "A loan in which Treasury was not involved; a loan which never had NEC approval;

5640-610: The Independent Public Business Corporation, the Papua New Guinea Liquefied Natural Gas Global Company LDC and, finally, Oil Search Limited". The Commission of inquiry into the UBS loan would pay attention to the fees paid to brokers and negotiators. Third, the loan was supposed to be redeemed for a long time before one could expect revenues from the Elk-Antelope gas field to repay it. It was expected to be serviced from

5760-472: The Interoil shares by ExxonMobil is partly deferred until the FID and first shipments are made. Interoil retains residual rights to income from the gasfield if it performs above certain expectations. Pac-LNG has retained residual rights to income if the output is beyond a certain expectation. Total deferred cash payments for equity to the date of the FID (US$ 230 million). The Memorandum of Understanding between

5880-488: The National Energy Policy which demanded that 15% of all gas output was available for domestic use. The agreement mentions the only provision of gas for electricity supply ignores possible wider industrial use. Gas would also have been expensive as it would be indexed from a high base to the world market price while it is domestically supplied. At the time of the agreement's conclusion, doubts returned in regards to

6000-474: The PNG government acquired the sum through a loan from IPIC (International Public Investment Corporation; part of Mubadala Investment Company ), a sovereign fund from the government of Abu Dhabi . It was not an ordinary loan, but an Exchangeable bonde . IPIC acquired the right to either be repaid in cash or through the security in the loan: PNG's equity in Oil Search Limited. These shares ideally would, at

6120-540: The PNG government and the companies involved in the Elk-Antelope field was announced at the end of the A Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) conference in 2018. Its intent was to support PNG's international status, and it was followed by an agreement in April 2019 to start the Front End Engineering Design process. The Final Investment Decision (FID) that makes construction possible is expected in 2020. Output

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6240-546: The PNG government for a Petroleum Development License (PDL) started in May 2020 and were concluded with a non binding agreement in September 2020. It was non binding because there was still fundamental disagreement on the government off take of the benefits. Negotiations were again protracted: an expected signing of a contract was cancelled in July 2021. Kua, the minister in charge then demanded

6360-400: The PNG government regarding their interest in additional equity in the project. Negotiations with the government broke down in 2019, but were resumed in 2021 Agreement was reached in February 2022: three years after breaking off negotiations. The PNG government considered the deal reached very favourably. Prime Minister Marape claimed a government take of 63% in this deal as compared to 49% in

6480-634: The PNG/LNG project and 51% in the Papua LNG project. The agreement gives 34.5 per cent of the equity in the project to the PNG State, significantly more than the 22.5 per cent for the TotalEnergies-led Papua LNG project or the 19.6 per cent for PNG's first gas project, PNG LNG. Exxon said it will work with the PNG government regarding their interest in additional equity in the project. It will offload shares to provide for landowner interests, Construction

6600-483: The Pacific regions competing in 28 sports events, including: basketball , soccer , touch rugby , table tennis , weightlifting, triathlon , swimming, cricket, squash , shooting, sailing, va'a , rugby 7s, powerlifting, rugby league 9s, volleyball , beach volleyball , athletics, hockey , netball , karate , lawn bowls, bodybuilding, boxing, softball , taekwondo , golf , and canoeing. Papua New Guinea ranked first with

6720-508: The Port Moresby area expanded rapidly after independence. In 1980, the census return registered a population of 120,000; by 1990, this had increased to 195,000. Moresby has a tropical savanna climate ( Köppen : Aw ) with relatively constant temperatures throughout the year. Port Moresby's average yearly rainfall is 898.8 millimetres or 35.39 inches, making it the driest place in New Guinea. The wet season starts in December and ends in May;

6840-467: The State to repay the equity capital sourced from external lending institutions or will enable the investor to recoup its equivalent equity capital cost internally using future positive cash flows from the project.” Kerenge Kua, the minister of mines gave the most comprehensive statement on mining policies so far to a webinar of the PNG Chamber of Mines. He advocated moving from a concessionary statement to

6960-491: The United States to set up an oil company that began to export in 2004. This was the largest project in PNG's history. The project increased the potential to triple PNG's export revenue. Papua New Guinea gained much assistance from Australia and was offered two hundred million dollars a year in aid, and many countries such as Singapore, Japan and China have also played a great part in PNG's industry business. The decision to host

7080-750: The agreement would be entertained. Oil Search warned that revisions may push back the FID to 2021 and projects elsewhere in the world may take precedence over Papua-LNG Three government-backed lenders – Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC), the US Overseas Private Investment Corporationt (OPIC) and Export Australia Finance otherwise named Export Finance and Insurance Corporation (EFIC) – announced an initial commitment to lend to Papua-LNG. Kua negotiated with Total in Singapore in August 2019 to receive better terms, which resulted in

7200-426: The agreement: first, the agreement was created without the necessary and required consultation. Landowner groups have not been properly identified in the PNG LNG project after ten years of operation. The government claimed that the money was reserved for when the process of identification is complete, without clarifying where the money was. It was seen as a cardinal mistake in the PNG LNG project that this identification

7320-579: The city during the dry season. Port Moresby is the single district of the National Capital District , which contains three Local Level Government (LLG) areas. For census purposes, the LLG areas are subdivided into wards and those into census units. The National Capital District machinery of government also incorporates the Motu Koita Assembly , established by an act of parliament to represent

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7440-609: The commercial heart of Port Moresby, is very idle, with many former shopping buildings now empty; the west is full of high rises, shopping centres and affluent housing. Other neighbourhoods of Port Moresby include Koki , with its popular fresh produce market, Newtown , Konedobu , Kaevaga , Badili , Gabutu , Kila Kila , Matirogo , Three Mile, Kaugere , Sabama , Korobosea , Four Mile, Hohola , Hohola North , Boroko , Gordons , Gordons North , Erima , Saraga , Waigani , Morata and Gerehu . Villages within Port Moresby include: Al Jazeera describes Port Moresby as "one of

7560-472: The construction of a processing (conditioning) plant at the wellheads to separate the oil (condense) from the gas, a separate pipe line to Daru , and the construction of a liquefaction plant in Daru. ( There has been no significant follow up. It is a mooted point whether it should be a stand alone project or whether it should be integrated in the operations of LNG-PNG and Oil Search in the highlands.The expectation

7680-514: The contentious issue in the fall of the O’Neill/Abel government. The signing of a Fiscal Stability Agreement in February may in this respect be more important as this concerns the most crucial issue: government income from the project. Government has given in more through withdrawing the amendments 2020 to the Mining Act. These amendments gave among others greater powers to the minister in determining

7800-495: The costs of acquiring the shares besides the substantive collared loan of A$ 904 million to cover the price of the Oil Search shares. The Ombudsman Commission's report found that "it involved different contracts being signed between at least eight different parties including the PNG State, UBS AG, UBS Nominees Pty Ltd, UBS Securities Australia Limited, the National Petroleum Company of PNG (Kroton) Limited and its parent,

7920-429: The dea,. which led to a bristling reply from Marape, yet he remained vague as regards to envisioned changes. Minister for Petroleum and Energy Kerenga Kua announced two months after the change of government that a revision of the "regulatory and commercial terms of the so called LNG agreement was ready for political approval". The companies involved were unsympathetic to proposed changes. Total declared that no change in

8040-404: The deal in courts and in the shareholders meeting, but was defeated in both instances. The pattern of fierce competition and shifting alliances resulted in the following shareholding and proposed structure for the project: Total is the largest shareholder of the Elk-Antelope fields with a 31.1% interest. The partners are ExxonMobil (28.3%) and Oil Search (17.7%). The plan assumed that construction

8160-502: The debate around the IPIC loan. First, the loan concluded by bypassing the legally required channels and the little consultation that took place was careless. For example, the board of the State Petroleum organization was presented with a decision that they were expected to follow and concerns were ignored. PNG's National Executive Council (NEC) was also confronted with a prepared statement. The treasurer, Don Polye , refused to sign and

8280-615: The discovery was so large, Phil E. Mulacek, chairman and chief executive, informed an analyst, that simply controlling its output 'was sort of like trying to stop the Mississippi.'" An agreement was made between Interoil and the PNG government to proceed towards exploitation on one condition: Interoil had to partner with a company that had experience the development and management of a gas field. Shell and ExxonMobil were mentioned as possible partners when Interoil entered negotiations. The investment bank Merrill Lynch (now called Merrill (company)

8400-490: The energy companies were only willing to grant minor concessions. Kua had to accept the terms of the Papua-LNG agreement, but he insisted that the agreement for the P’nyang gas field should offer considerably better terms: "In the P’nyang talks, the government appears to be seeking a better tax take, more local content and jobs opportunities, more project information from the operator, and a firm commitment to development of P’nyang in

8520-455: The entry of strategic partners, and for inclusion of the Government of Papua New Guinea. The project has reportedly sparked violence and in April, 2012, the Papua New Guinea government called in troops to quell opposition from villagers after a landslide linked to a quarry that had been used by the project killed an estimated 25 people. PNG Gas Papua New Guinea has exported liquefied natural gas (LNG) since 2014. The LNG sector

8640-517: The estimated 7.1 trillion cubic feet in Hides and associated fields. While planning and implementation of the LNG PNG project did not encounter problems, the Elk-Antelope gas field project was mired in political and technical controversies. Two relatively small oil and gas companies were major players in the Elk-Antelope gas field: Interoil and Oil Search. Interoil was a minor company in the gas and oil industry that acquired exploration licenses for oil and gas in PNG in 2005. The driving force in Interoil

8760-426: The expansion of its PNG LNG plan with new trains after a Petroleum Development Licence was given for the P’nyang field. The result was a stalemate. Landowner interests are a further complicating factor. An umbrella organisation of landowners groups covering the area of operation of Papua/LNG went to the courts in order to ask for a temporary injunction against the continuation of developing Papua-LNG. The court allowed

8880-412: The field's value. Interoil had always presented the Elk-Antelope gas field as their own original find. That is not true; there is an earlier explorative team in the area that found gas, but doubted whether the field was exploitable. A whistleblower in the Department of Energy has brought this in the open again at the time of signing the agreement. According to the report, the field had five major problems:

9000-515: The gas was probably not as extensive as predicted, not easily extractable, high water content, low quality gas, required expensive treatment, and the field's geology is suspect. Fok, the Minister of Mining, replied to the Governor of Hela province , Philip Undialo, who had a concern about the gas agreement. He denied all accusations and considered them lies for political purposes. He stressed that none of

9120-399: The income from PNG LNG. However, according to the treasury secretary Diari Vele , the PNG government could only expect revenues to flow after 2020 when investment costs were recouped. The investment costs had to be settled out of depreciation charges to pay off the loans to the highly geared project. The loan had to be repaid in 2016 and Morauta wondered how that had to be repaid. Ultimately,

9240-472: The initial criticism came from Hela province, the locus of LNG PNG where benefits should have appeared. Philip Undialu , Governor of Hela Province, submitted a long list of critical questions. Minister of Finance James Marape , who was from Hela, resigned. More MPs followed him and resigned from the governing party (PNC). Four out of five resigning MPs originated from resource-rich areas Former Prime Minister Late Sir Mekere Morauta criticised three areas in

9360-414: The landowners to delay the issue of a Production Development Licence until a new agreement was negotiated and a new Petroleum and Gas Act was in place. Among the landowners' demands were production sharing and at least 50% PNG ownership. Policies did not reflect much on the attempts to gain equity in the projects. The PNG government has lost its shareholding in Oil Search and exchanged them in practice for

9480-466: The licence for the Pandora Garfield and gave it to the parastatal Kumul Petroleum Holdings. The projection of equity participation finances in LNG projects is a major issue in the politics surrounding LNG projects. The Mining Act in PNG allowed government participation to be involved to have a share of a maximum of 30 percent in natural resources projects; In the case of PNG LNG this was projected as

9600-404: The loan could have resulted in financing it from the income stream of PNG/LNG. That was due to early maturing of the loan not realistic." The government of PNG lost its equity in Oil Search after the IPIC loan was redeemed and had exchanged it for equities in LNG PNG. O’Neill wanted to redress this situation with a new shareholder in Oil Search, who was looking for fresh capital to buy a stake in

9720-419: The loan was repaid by the transfer of shares to Oil Search. The repayment was made at a loss: the government of PNG had bought these at A$ 8.20 and the price was A$ 6,70 at the time of redemption. When the deal concluded the PNG government expected the share price to double which would have resulted in a windfall for the PNG government. Kumul Petroleum Holdings, the state owned company that owned the shares estimated

9840-518: The loan; it was a " collared loan ", which implied hedging one's bets on the movement of share prices – the high and low were the collar – in order to guarantee a loan purchasing the shares. The risks for the bank were reduced because the loan was to be serviced directly from an Escrow account in Singapore where PNG's income from LNG PNG was paid. UBS had a first claim to the money, The finances were controversial since its inception and were similar to

9960-860: The local Papua New Guinea team who play in the Intrust Super Cup which is the Queensland NRL tournament. The National Football Stadium features a permanent main grandstand with seating for 3,000 including a roof and corporate facilities while temporary stands around the ground boost the seating capacity. There are also lights and a video screen. The International Education Agency provides private education via six international schools; Korobosea International School, Boroko International School, Ela Murray International School, Gordon International School, Port Moresby International School and IEA TAFE college. There are approximately three hundred staff. The Port Moresby International School (POMIS) has been operating since

10080-508: The loss at US$ 254 million. Income from natural resources in PNG projects were far below international standards, according to authoritative institutions ( OECD , IMF and IETI Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative ). It was thus understandable that renegotiation of the Papua/LNG agreement was a priority for the Marape government after coming to power. Kua reopened negotiations. However,

10200-460: The main business area, known locally as "Town". Since the 1990s the original town centre has ceased to have restaurants and night life, though it is very successful and prosperous-looking as an office centre. The affluent housing region north of downtown along and up from the coast remains so, though there are now few modest residential houses, most of which are replaced with substantial mansions and apartment buildings. The suburb of Boroko, once

10320-483: The major shareholder we will have to meet capital calls when required and bear operating risks like other shareholders.We don't need to do this”. Port Moresby Port Moresby ( / ˈ m ɔːr z b i / ; Tok Pisin : Pot Mosbi ), also referred to as Pom City or simply Moresby , is the capital and largest city of Papua New Guinea . It is one of the largest cities in the southwestern Pacific (along with Jayapura ) outside of Australia and New Zealand. It

10440-416: The management contract. The companies would also have been exempt from paying GST, import, duties, and taxes on project goods and consumables. The management of the project was virtually tax free which made the management contract more profitable. Morauta argues that nothing was learnt from the LNG PNG project and mentions two specific instances: first, there was no proper taxation for windfall profits and there

10560-477: The members of the State Negotiating Team had publicly spoken negatively about the agreement. The agreement on the Elk-Antelope gas field became the core of political controversies about PNG's policies with respect to natural resources. It led to Peter O'Neill O'Neill's resignation. His successor, James Marape, announced changes in the management of PNG's natural resources in his maiden speech, though at

10680-665: The mistakes of LNG PNG should have been avoided. O’Neill agreed, though he also said that there should be an "environment for our development partners to maximise returns on their investment". He was under pressure from a comment in the March Monetary Policy Statement from the Bank of Papua New Guinea , which urged the government to be less generous with tax concessions. The policies with respect of tax and natural resource projects had led to less availability of foreign exchange and had not strengthened tax revenues. In 2018, PNG had

10800-399: The most dangerous cities in the world". ABC Australia reports that "many homes have big fences covered in metal sheeting, locked gates and internal steel security doors." Travel by foot is not recommended in and about the city and suburbs due to continuing breakdown in law and order. The UN Global Compact Cities Programme, using a method called Circles of Sustainability , has assessed

10920-451: The most medals followed by New Caledonia and Tahiti . The opening ceremony took place on 4 July 2015 involving various traditional dances. The closing ceremony involved singers such as J Boog, Fiji, O-Shen and George Mamua Telek. The venue has hosted the PNG national side since 1975 and has previously hosted Rugby League World Cup matches in 1986 and 1990. It is also home of the Hunters,

11040-422: The natives' list of acceptable voluntary activities and that they would fade away without great inducements. Many Papuan residents of Port Moresby either returned to their family villages or were evacuated to camps when the threat of Japanese invasion loomed. By September 1942, the city was an important Allied complex of bases, and thousands of troops were stationed in the area or more often, staged through it, as it

11160-541: The next LNG project: the Elk-Antelope gas field. They needed US$ 900 million to buy the share of Pac LNG group in that field. Oil Search issued new share capital to finance this acquisition. These shares were bought by the government of PNG and financed with a loan from the Australian branch of the UBS bank. This loan was similar to the IPIC loan to finance shares in LNG PNG: the shares that PNG bought in Oil Search were security for

11280-411: The ninth South Pacific Games to be held. This was the first time that events at one games had been held in two cities. The decision to do so was to allow both locations to benefit from the construction of new facilities. Cricket PNG is the official governing body of the sport of cricket in Papua New Guinea . Its headquarters is in Port Moresby. Cricket PNG is Papua New Guinea's representative at

11400-465: The problem of expertise. The French multinational Total SE is a major company in the oil and gas industry and they filled the void by buying a 60 percent interest in the gasfield. Oil Search Company entered negotiations around the same time. It was already a stakeholder in the LNG PNG project and it extended its interests by buying into the Elk-Antelope gas fields, and they bought the Pac LNG group that had

11520-415: The projects is controversial and has been a dominant theme in PNG politics in the past decade. It became a major issue in the events leading to the resignation of Peter O'Neill as prime minister. The Hides gas field is the main field operated by PNG LNG and was discovered in 1987 by BP , who sold it to Oil Search . Originally, the idea was to transport the gas through a pipeline to Australia. Chevron

11640-447: The same time he was keen to reassure investors: "He did not intend to chase industry away, but asserting that reforms were needed to ensure benefits are spread more evenly." Oil Search's Peter Botten proclaimed immediately after Marape's appointment that it was likely that nothing would change and arrangements would remain the same when the third gas field Pn'yang came into production. Botten did not expect any significant new concessions on

11760-403: The second project: the "Elk/Antelope" field. These companies cooperate under the Papua-LNG project. The development of the third project, the "P'nyang Gas Field", is in an advanced planning stage. The fourth LNG project in development is the "Western Gas" field. The fifth Pasca gasfield is offshore. The benefits of LNG development for the country is a controversial issue. Government participation in

11880-465: The shareholders of Interoil and is not working capital for Papua-LNG. Nothing has been built or constructed with that money: it is merely a sum paid in the expectation of predicted income, which contrasts with investing in a company that started from scratch. The project is expected to be financed from loans for 70%; where the loan capital would come from is undetermined. The agreement was also politically controversial. Authoritative voices had argued that

12000-533: The south-eastern corner of the New Guinea Island (subsequently known as Papua), fearing that Germany would take control of the entire eastern half of the island. British authorities refused to approve the annexation following the German annexation of New Guinea in 1884, but four years later it established a protectorate over Papua as British New Guinea . In 1905, the recently federated Australian government passed

12120-514: The subject for further negotiations. The expectation was in July 2021 before negotiations broke down again to reach final investment decision in 2022 and first production in 2025. That is now certainly to be considerably delayed. Another contentious issue appeared at the Pandora Gasfield. Twinza oil wanted to align the Pasca Gas field with neighbouring Pandora Gasfield. However government retrieved

12240-440: The time of redemption, equal at least the value of the loan which was designated at a share value of A$ 8.55. If the value of the shares was lower than the loan, the PNG government would have to pay out the missing cash. If the value of the shares was higher than the loan and IPIC wanted to buy the shares, the PNG government was entitled to the extra value in cash. The loan was expected to mature after five years, but IPIC could opt for

12360-619: The traditional landowners of Port Moresby, the Motu and Koitabu people. The Assembly governs the traditional lands and inhabitants of the ten recognised villages, and is the only entity of its kind in Papua New Guinea. The Chair of the Motu Koita Assembly also holds the position of Deputy Governor of the National Capital District. Port Moresby refers to both the urbanised area of the National Capital District and more specifically to

12480-409: The urban security of Port Moresby as 'critical'. Port Moresby is served within the city by buses and privately owned taxis. Flights are vital for transport about the country, highways not being widely available. Port Moresby is served by Jacksons International Airport , the biggest international airport and Papua New Guinea Defence Force Air Wing base in the country. As the national highway system

12600-548: Was Royal Navy Captain John Moresby in 1873. It was named in honour of his father, Admiral of the Fleet Sir Fairfax Moresby . Although Port Moresby is surrounded by Central Province , of which it is also the capital, it is not part of that province but forms the National Capital District . The traditional landowners, the Motu and Koitabu people, are represented by the Motu Koita Assembly . Port Moresby hosted

12720-400: Was also involved. However, at the end of 2012 Interoil did not manage to find a partner to reach a Final Investment Decision (FID) and were in danger of losing the licence. A proposal suggested that the PNG government would become a 50 percent shareholder instead of taking the proposed equity of 22.3 percent. It was denied because the government did not have the money and it would not solve

12840-525: Was becoming less confrontational when Prime Minister Marape announced “a binding framework” agreement with Barrick Niugini gold mine in Porgera after a serious confrontation. This new deal includes 51% shareholding in the company. Charles Abel, entered the fray again. He was the deputy chairman on the government negotiating team on Papua/LNG and maintained that the deal struck by the O’Neill government with Papua LNG

12960-515: Was built in Port Moresby just west of the old legislative building but the last pre-independence chief minister and first prime minister of the sovereign state declared it not nearly grand enough; it was made the residence of Australian high commissioners and a mansion suitable to Somare's demands was built in Waigani. Several of the government buildings have been abandoned due to long-term neglect. Chief amongst these are Marea Haus (known to most locals as

13080-446: Was defended by Arthur Somare when the deal was concluded. He argued that the government did not want the loan to add to government indebtedness. It was fundamentally the sale of an asset – the Oil Search shares – in the first place. 2008 was also the year of the worldwide financial crisis which made it difficult to raise money. "The exchangeable bond effectively involved a future swap in shares held in Oil Search for immediate funding for

13200-510: Was fired as a result. However, there were more ministers who opposed the decision. The decision has probably passed in some form through the Central Bank and the Ministry of Finance, but prominent PNG economists argued from its inception that "the UBS loan was sought outside of sound fiscal management laws and legal governance". This was confirmed by an Ombudsman Commission report that recommended

13320-414: Was its founder: Phil E. Mulacek , who announced in 2007 the discovery of a large gas field on the edge of the Gulf of Papua in the south of the country. "The InterOil Corporation, made the kind of announcement investors crave: explorations near the refinery had uncorked a vast pool of natural gas potentially larger than the United States' total residential consumption of the fossil fuel in 2005. The size of

13440-524: Was made evident by Petroleum Minister Kerenge Kua when he stressed that the issues involved remained political at a meeting with a senior visitor from Total in France. The Pn’yang gas field is the third project for PNG Gas. It is situated in the lowlands to the northwest of the Hides gas field. It was originally thought to be a relatively small gas field, but a certification exercise revised this as composing of 4.37 trillion cubic feet of gas. For comparison, Hides

13560-427: Was no mention of taxing the oil that came out of the well mixed with gas (condensate). The oil was sold to Oilsearch, which could have been seen as compensation for Oilsearch losing out on the management contract. The third area of criticism concerned the domestic gas obligations of the project. The domestic provision of gas was an option to 5% of the output in the agreement. The agreement was also in contravention to

13680-525: Was not completed before the start of the project. Therefore, landowner groups should have been identified before the APDL (Application for a Petroleum Development Licence) was submitted. Abel defended it as the agreement is provisional; there was no APDL at the time. None of the members of the SNT (State Negotiating Team) publicly broke ranks with government, but there were strong statements claiming that this team, as well as

13800-447: Was not there and the required procedure was not followed. Second, the tax arrangements are similar to the ones in LNG PNG. The State agreed with the ongoing operational and depreciation costs. Depreciation in the project was tied to the repayment of loans. Profitability was predicted to be low until the loans were repaid with interest. If the participating partners furnished the loan capital themselves they would have assured themselves of

13920-466: Was provided in 1941. During World War II , some Papuan men enlisted in the Papua Infantry Battalion and others as carriers over trails and rough terrains ( porters ) as supply support to Allied and Japanese armies during long jungle marches. Historian William Manchester outlines in his biography of General Douglas MacArthur , American Caesar , that acting as porters was well down

14040-559: Was suspended. The suspension lasted til May 2021. Collaboration was resumed after a delay of three years as the result of a meeting in Paris between the CEO of Total and Sam Basil, as deputy prime minister of PNG. They announced the remobilisation of the project teams and other required resources, At the meeting there was a reconfirmation of the Papua LNG Gas Agreement in 2019 which had been

14160-412: Was the big fossil fuel company that would carry it forward. It came close to a production phase but the project was dropped in 2007 after Australian customers dropped out of the conditional sales agreements. At present Australia exports a manifold of LNG compared to PNG and the project would not be of interest for that market anymore. In 2008 ExxonMobil assumed leadership to develop a gas project sourcing

14280-626: Was the last Allied bastion on the island and, conversely, a key staging and jumping off point as the Allies began conducting offensive warfare themselves, pushing back the Japanese advances. General MacArthur located his headquarters in Port Moresby from November 1942 to October 1944. In 1945, the Territory of Papua and New Guinea was formed when Papua and the former German New Guinea, which had been administered by Australia since 1918, were amalgamated under

14400-518: Was wrongly portrayed It was much better than came across to the public. That deal also included 51% ownership of the project. However despite this mention Abel said: “The objective should be a more heavily weighted royalty system based on export value as it is much easier to monitor and is not subject to net profit as is dividends and tax. He reiterated in 2021: it is unwise for the PNG government to rely on equity participation but should instead mobilise an income stream through royalties and taxation. “As

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