Oil & Gas Act

Prime Minister James Marape says this assurance has been made to stakeholders in the mining and petroleum sectors.

The Prime Ministers revealed this when announcing the non-renewal of the Porgera Gold Mine Special Mining Lease.

Marape said the announcement of the non-renewal of the SML should not scare investors and stakeholders in the mining and petroleum sectors.  

Prime Minister, James Marape, says resource laws will be amended over the next two years to build a solid foundation for the economy.

Prime Minister Marape said some of the policy fundamentals will be put in place, and legislative amendments and laws passed over the next two years before the 2022 National Elections.

Marape said amendments to resource laws will be brought before Parliament.

Current reviews include the Oil & Gast Act and the Mining Act.

Minster Pok said the Bill and the Act review will soon be brought to the National Executive Council for endorsement.

The Petroleum Authority Bill and Oil & Gas Act Review aim to improve business around future oil and gas development projects so PNG can receive the maximum benefit.

One such area the Bill and Act review aims to improve is to ensure social mapping and landowner identification is done.

Director of the Gas Projects Coordinating Office (GPCO), Peter Koim, tells Loop PNG that there are currently some loopholes that need to be addressed before a fully-fledged offshore project takes place.

“Our different laws have been initially designed to host on-shore projects, whether it be mining, LNG projects, or oil projects,” said Koim.