After a long wait, the Petroleum Development License (PDL) 1 landowners of the Hides Gas Project in Hela Province will now open their bank accounts and access landowner benefits.
This will be made possible after launch of Hides PDL 1 Clan Bank Account Opening, Awareness & Consultation at Juni camp Hides in Tari recently. The awareness ends on December 10.
Since March 2022, Mineral Resource Development Company (MRDC) and Gas Resources Hides 4 have paid 277 landowner clans in equity and royalty payments worth K19.6 million.
The beneficiaries of Hides Petroleum Development License 7 taking out their first equity and royalty payments, a total of K19.6 million were paid into the beneficiary clan bank accounts.
The PDL 1 project area landowners consists of communities from the six major tribes which are grouped into blocks or regions, and the identity of the PDL 1 PALOs was confirmed in the Ministerial Determination published in the National Gazette.
MRDC Managing Director and CEO Augustine Mano, when visiting the Juni camp explained to the people the process involved regarding their payments, followed with the landowner directors’ election and disbursement of Royalty and Equity payments.
“MRDC mipla gat olsem tiripla process. Nambawan yumi opim account, Namba two em bai mipla electim ol directors and namba three em bai mipla go na wokim payment (There are processes to follow before MRDC pays out landowner benefits. Number one process or requirement is opening of bank accounts, followed by election of directors and finally the payment process,” Mr Mano said.
He said over the next few days, the MRDC team would visit the six blocks to begin opening of accounts.
Hela Governor, Philip Undialu stated that the Hides PDL 1 project contributed close to 90 percent of the PNG LNG Project since 2014, and for a long time the people have endured many challenges as well.
“Displa opening akaunt na clan miting na payim ol papa graun inap long ol kamap longpla taim yet, yumi sainim agrimen long Kokopo em i wininm 13 years (The clan vetting and opening of bank accounts is long overdue as per the Kokopo signing agreement 13 years ago).
“Gas flow em I teikim 8 years now yumi kam planti lapun blo mipla die i gat planti issues stap but mi nonap story. But mi ken tokaut olsem ol lidas blo hia ol putim ol interest blo kantri ahead of their own interest. (Gas has been flowing for the last eight years and while waiting most of our elders have died, there are many issues to sort but the local leaders have put the country’s interest ahead of their own people).
Governor Undialu thanked the government for its support and the people for their patience and cooperation.