theceomagazine.com | 153How do PNG’s oil and gas resources compare with
other energy resources like wind, solar and hydro?
PNG is blessed with an entire spectrum of energy resources;
wind, hydro, geothermal, coal and biomass – all kinds. But
gas is probably our dominant economic resource. Most of
the energy production in PNG now is LNG and hydro.
Kumul Petroleum and Oil Search have equal ownership
in building a power plant that will supply 58 megawatts to
Port Moresby City. So that’s our first project in trying to
utilise gas to supply energy to the local market.
How do these resources directly benefit the people
of PNG?
Through developments like the PNG LNG project and
other Petroleum and Energy projects. Obviously, we think
there is huge socio-economic impact from construction,
industry. We have 20.5 per cent interest in every project that
gets developed in PNG. We have close to 17 per cent in the
PNG LNG project, and 20.5 per cent in the PapuaLNG
project and others reaching development stages. So, all in
all, we have a strong local presence but a much smaller
footprint outside of the country. As far as our regional
presence is concerned, we have a small marketing office in
Singapore but that’s about it. Otherwise, we are an entirely
PNG-based oil company.
through to production phases of the development, as well
as the entire lifespan of the projects. PNG citizens benefit
through tax, royalties and levies. So these resource
developments bring a lot of wider benefits, beyond just the
direct benefits of projects. We do realise the importance of
these project developments and the effect it has on the
overall economy.You held your second PNG Petroleum and Energy
Summit in March. How important is this for PNG?
The summit combines petroleum and energy discussions.
A few of us in the energy and petroleum sectors thought
we should promote and have a local conference, since the
industry’s big enough. I myself wanted the summit to be
used as a platform to discuss alternative energy sources to
petroleum. We’ve had a whole lot of discussions around
petroleum development and policies, along the different
spectrums of the oil and gas sector. But I think energy
discussions were left behind. All of this led to the conference
so we could have more conversations on energy. The first
two summits have been a real success, and we’re looking at
a third one next year.What do you see as the future of energy?
The people and companies are realising that we already
have the energy resources available; we just need to harness
them. The message is getting louder. We have skilled labour,
and if we have cheap, reliable energy we will attract
investment and initiate economic growth, which will then
create jobs and help the overall GDP and economy. The
importance of energy is beginning to sink in. Things like
the summits are great for getting this message across.Would you say that PNG is ready for the future
of energy?
Yes, we’re getting there, for example, by Kumul Petroleum
and Oil Search jointly building this power plant in Port
Moresby to use gas-fired engines. By doing this, we are
sending a strong message that we need to focus on reliable,
cheap energy for industry and the community. So we’re
getting there, and PNG is ready for the future.What kind of team do you have at Kumul?
We’re not really that big. We have around 72 employees,
|and almost 80 per cent of them are locals. We also have
a lot of experts who are highly skilled, mature individuals
and have a lot of experience in the industry. They can pass
on their knowledge, provide leadership and fill skill gaps. It’s
designed to provide the knowledge transfer and leadership
skills required to build a company and its future. »“WE TRY
TO MAINTAIN
THIS SOCIAL
CONSCIOUSNESS,
AND TRANSFER
SOME OF THE
WEALTH CREATED
INTO SOCIAL
DEVELOPMENT.”
Interview | INVEST