Papua New Guinean Prime Minister, Peter O’Neill has welcomed the decision by Total and joint venture partners to proceed with the Papua LNG project.
Negotiations will now continue to ensure that gas not only derives export income, but also provides strong direct input to economic development through downstream industries and electricity production.
“The third train of LNG is the next major economic development project for our nation, and will employ ten thousand workers in the construction phase,” the Prime Minister said in a statement.
He added that most of the workforce will be Papua New Guinean, and as with PNG-LNG construction, which will provide a major boost to skills and capacity in our workforce.
The PNG Government intends to keep moving forward with the next phase of the Papua LNG project, as agreed with Total and partners, so that project milestones can be reached on time and the economic benefits can be realized.
“Very importantly there will be ongoing negotiations to ensure clear national benefits from each stage of the process are shared with Papua New Guineans,” said O’Neill, adding, “We have to ensure that the people of Papua New Guinea have the opportunity to utilise our gas for domestic economic activity.”
Prime Minister added that Papua New Guinea wants to improve its own energy security by using more of domestic gas for power generation.
He said there will be a number of announcements made by joint venture partners in the coming months as they continue to complete surveys and analysis on specific construction items.
“The next two years will see work underway that will include social mapping and land identification studies, societal impact assessments, and the finalization of construction requirements,” O’Neill said. “The Government stands ready to move ahead with preparatory work, including ensuring regulatory requirements are met and processed, and environment studies are undertaken.”
The Prime Minister added that arrangements between the project and the Government will be clarified further, and the marketing of Papua LNG will be underway.
Talking of the current global energy prices, O’Neill said that the gas from the Elk-Antelope field is high quality and by the time Papua LNG reaches the market it is anticipated energy prices will have improved, adding that Papua New Guinea’s proximity to the growing Asian market places Papua LNG in a very strong competitive position.
LNG World News Staff; Image: pm.gov.pg