The United Kingdom is the main contributor to the United Nations Peacebuilding Fund, which funds programs in Bougainville and the Highlands region of Papua New Guinea. Last week, British High Commissioner to Papua New Guinea Keith Scott said that the United Kingdom, as a Permanent Member of the United Nations Security Council, regularly engages in negotiations on Bougainville and offers support and other assistance through UN and other international development agencies. “We provided K425,000 for the UN Post-Referendum Support Project, with potentially up to another K1 million available, including for Bougainville’s economic development,” High Commissioner Scott said. Since 2018, the government has contributed more than K160 million to Papua New Guinea by key donations to multilateral such as the World Bank (International Development Association), the EU, UN organizations, and the Global Fund (OECD figures). And there's their separate assistance to Bougainville, which they've provided over the years. “The UK, as Permanent Member of the UN Security Council, participates actively in discussions on Bougainville,” he said. “We have sent observers for the independence referendum and contributed K450,000 to the UN Referendum Support Project. We have also sponsored two study tours to the UK in 2016 for leading representatives from PNG and Bougainville governments to learn about the post-conflict political settlement in Northern Ireland and the autonomy arrangements in Scotland.” He added, “We have also arranged two visits to Bougainville by former Minister for Presidential Affairs for South Sudan and former member of the Irish Republican Army to discuss their experiences of engaging with peace processes. We sponsored a peacebuilding forum in Arawa in March 2019 for 60 participants and we have assisted with K45,000 to fund Women’s Safe House in Haku, Bougainville.”

For the fiscal year 2020, Steamships Trading Company posted a profit of K78.9 million. This represents a 57.7% increase from the company's financial year 2019 figures. Consort's better efficiency, along with small contributions from the other logistics companies, helped to offset a loss in Coral Sea Hotels and a weaker outcome for Pacific Palms Property, resulting in the results. The underlying results (before major items) improved by 17.2 per cent in 2019. Chairman G.L Cundle said that, despite the negative effects of COVID, 2020 saw a moderate boost in the group's results, despite the anticipated gains from the APEC Leaders summit not materializing, resource project developments stalling, and a change in government increasing instability. Cundle said the Office of the Prime Minister proclaimed a State of Emergency in Papua New Guinea a year ago because of the global COVID-19 virus pandemic, but the country is now suffering from the virus's effects. Although increased regulatory controls and a decline in demand for goods and services have undoubtedly had an impact on companies, he believes Steamships is well placed to resolve the difficulties raised by the pandemic. “The impact of the pandemic was mostly experienced by the hospitality sector, where Steamships hotel group, Coral Sea Hotels, was immediately and deeply impacted by border closures and restrictions on domestic travel,” he said. “Our logistics businesses quickly adjusted to the new operating constraints caused by the pandemic, and whilst all were impacted, the feared worst-case scenarios have not transpired. Property occupancy and rates have suffered as expatriates have left the country as business and aid agencies scaled back their operations. The impact of reduced occupancy and rental rates may impact the property market for several years.” According to Cundle, a growing budget deficit, which limits the government's ability to stimulate the economy, together with a lack of new resource ventures, would possibly weaken corporate expenditure trust in 2021. Steamships' companies continued to adapt rapidly in 2020, despite the twin pressures of a poor underlying market and the global ramifications of COVID-19, he added. “Management will remain vigilant in managing costs while being responsive to opportunities created by challenging market conditions,” he said, “As ever, and with PNG being both our home and only substantive place of business, Steamships will continue to contribute and participate in PNG’s economic and social development. We are well-positioned for recovery and our team will continue to grow Steamships and its contribution to PNG.”

Last month, five senior national workers from the halted Porgera Mine operations received resident mine manager certificates. All five are part of the Porgera mine's Care and Maintenance (C&M) Leadership team  Ezekiel Nori, Superintendent (Probationary) Open Pit Mining, Teddy Ulopo, Senior Mine Engineer, Deryck Akis, Alternate Manager Sorting, Ian Kaisom, Superintendent Fixed Plant Management, and Underground Mine Engineer Adam Joseph obtained certificates from the mine via the Mineral Resources Authority. Acting executive managing director David Lilley said, “It is really important and critical for us at this stage of where we’re at. It means for us now, we are really well covered for having qualified and certified people on this site at all times to meet the requirements of the MRA. Basically, when we talk about these roles, it’s about keeping the site but more importantly the people safe and protecting the assets. It is not a purely technical exercise. It’s really focused on making sure that all the right safety processes are involved so no harm comes to anybody and we protect the ore body and assets.” The method of acquiring numerous mine manager certifications started in March 2020, shortly after the Porgera Mine was shut down. With the support of the site safety department and the backing of General Manager Operations, Tim Cribb, who is also a registered mine manager ticket holder, and Jackie Kolgkia, Superintendent Project with Mine Technical Site Projects, who earned her registered mine manager certificate in 2017, initiated the process for the company. Only a registered mine manager can nominate and endorse candidates for the respective MRA examinations for Certificates of Competency. “Obviously after the mine suspension and COVID-19 restrictions, it became apparent there was a need for sufficient coverage on-site as this is a part of the operational requirement to have a certified manager’s ticket holder on-site at any time, as required by the Mining Act,” Kolgkia said. “I, therefore, nominated and with the backing of the PJV management, supported the candidates through the process toward attaining their certificates. Having a ticket is one thing but sitting in that role, making those critical safety decisions is the key part.” On behalf of the certificate recipients, Deryck thanked Kolgkia and the PJV management for understanding and encouraging their need to take the exams as a business necessity. Ezekiel has also expressed his appreciation to the company for ensuring that the mine managers' credential was obtained.

The World Bank has funded a $30 million (PGK105 million) project to help the state-owned electricity provider PNG Power boost its operational and financial efficiency. The PNG Energy Utility Efficiency and Reliability Improvement Project (EUPRIP) arrives at a crucial time for PNG, with people around the country facing big problems with inadequate access to electricity, and even for those that do, unreliable power sources and long blackouts that are affecting households, industries, and critical service delivery. Though PNG has tremendous untapped energy resources, growth is lagging, and electricity connectivity remains extremely limited, with only around 13 per cent of the country's 8.6 million population having access to grid-connected electricity. The new project, which is scheduled to be completed between 2021 and 2026, will assist PPL in establishing a stable financial base and catalyze private investments in the energy sector. The scheme includes the reconstruction, reinforcement, and improvement of utilities on PNG Power Limited's (PPL) owned and managed grids in Port Moresby, Ramu, and Gazelle. The project would also help PPL boost its management and financial stability, with an emphasis on raising service quality to reach higher expectations on a regular basis. PPL will gain assistance in developing the business reform strategy, which will include smart meter installation and emerging technology implementations. In addition, through the planning and execution of a Least Cost Power Development Plan for PPL, the initiative will lead to lowering the cost of power generation and switching to clean, renewable energy. William Duma, the Minister for State Enterprises, said that supplying inexpensive and stable electricity to the PNG community is critical to the government's growth plans and that it necessitates a well-functioning service provider. Meanwhile, PPL Managing Director Flagon Bekker noted that the World Bank-funded PNG Energy Utility Efficiency and Reliability Improvement Project would allow PPL to contribute significantly to the Government's aim of connecting 70% of the population to electricity by 2030, as outlined in the PNG 2010-2030 Growth Strategic Plan. “PPL is embarking on major corporate reform initiatives,” he said. “We look forward to working alongside the World Bank team to put in place critical improvements that will ultimately deliver stronger, more reliable energy for all Papua New Guineans.” Stefano Mocci, the World Bank's Country Manager for Papua New Guinea, also stressed the importance of access to secure, affordable electricity for economic development; companies, schools, hospitals, and clinics, among countless other facilities in PNG, all need reliable, affordable electricity to keep the country developing. “This new project builds on the groundwork delivered through the World Bank’s Energy Sector Development Project, which helped prepare PNG’s National Electrification Rollout Plan, and geospatial assessments to plan optimal approaches to provide electricity to 70 per cent of the country’s population by the year 2030,” he said.  “We’re proud to be helping ensure more Papua New Guineans can get connected - and stay connected – to reliable, affordable electricity in the years ahead.” Agriculture, health, road transport, water and sanitation, electricity, rural service delivery, and youth jobs are among the nine successful projects supported by the World Bank in PNG, totalling approximately US$455 million.

The role of the procurement team in PNG will evolve and change in 2021.  These changes will come off the back of some unforeseen issues which may not of been as pertinent prior to the pandemic. Due to regulatory penalties, unprecedented disruption caused by COVID, an increase in raw materials, high demand in shipping and an increase to freight prices due to increased operational costs, many PNG based companies could face a number of complexities to procurement moving forward.  Companies in PNG and around the world will need to adapt to a more proactive approach to ensure supply chain and procurement disruption is minimised.  How can this be done? To minimise disruption, procurement teams should adapt a proactive approach by implementing supplier diversity, various freight & logistics partners, better supply chain management and improved foresight into the many potential issues of a post pandemic era.  As increases in freight are generally hard to avoid, procurement will need to implement these strategies in an effort to save money elsewhere.  The procurement and supply chain of businesses could very well see some challenging times ahead, all businesses should look at how effectively they can manage these issues to build a more resilient and agile supply chain. For more information visit: https://www.asiapac.biz

Prime Minister James Marape said in a statement that the government is willing to sign an agreement with Barrick Gold to reopen the Porgera Gold Mine in Enga, which has been closed for a year. The mine was abandoned after the State declined to extend Barrick Niugini Limited's mining contract (BNL). PM Marape said there was a breakthrough after dealing with BNL, with Papua New Guinea seeing a “far better deal” than in the first 31 years of service, from 1989 to 2020. “I’m announcing to our country that within the principles of my Government, which includes getting more from our natural resources, we are in a better position now to sign an agreement with Barrick for what will be a new Porgera,” the Prime Minister said. He added, “I can assure our country that this is a far superior and better deal, meaning our landowners and Enga Provincial Government will get more, and the balance of equity through Kumul Minerals will mean we hold a majority in equity. Other benefits include securing an increased and upfront tax with no concession as is the case with other resource projects, an increase in royalties as well as a better handle on environment and resettlement issues at Porgera and a Barrick exit option.” He noted, “Kumul Minerals Holdings, since being granted the Special Mining Lease (SML) over Porgera, could have started but many court cases Barrick had filed caused delays to reopen Porgera, hence we entered into these negotiations. We are almost at the point of signing an agreement with Barrick. If the last round of negotiation is good, then I intend to meet Enga Provincial Government and all SML and LMP plus impact area landowners at the earliest to discuss the benefits sharing.” "To those who questioned Government and Kumul Minerals Holdings on why this turn in Porgera, I inform all that we have every capacity to operate Porgera like we are doing in Ok Tedi right now,” he added. "But with Barrack’s court cases, we had to go down this path. Barrick has agreed with us on an exit option in the new Porgera agreement 10 years from now."

According to the Japanese Embassy, Japan is allocating more than K32 million to support Papua New Guinea (PNG) in fighting the transmission of the coronavirus (Covid-19). The embassy said in a statement last week that its government will give international organizations in PNG K32,484,368 to introduce projects to combat Covid-19 infections. The World Health Organization (WHO), the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF), the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), and the United Nations-Women carried out the programs (United Nation entity for gender equality and empowerment of women). “The Japanese government has to date approved a budget of 9.2 billion yen (K293,068,395), including the funds for PNG, to support Asia and Oceania in measures to prevent the spread of the virus,” the statement said. The projects aim to: SUPPORT WHO's efforts to develop and strengthen health services in the Covid-19 crisis; FOCUS on water sanitation and hygiene in schools and communities for Covid-19 prevention and response in Papua New Guinea (Unicef). PROVIDE emergency assistance to halt the spread of the Covid-19 virus, mitigate its effects along the agricultural value chain, and strengthen food security, education, and livelihoods (FAO); ENSURE healthy and profitable district programs to protect women's lives during covid-19 prevention, response, and rehabilitation (UN-women).

Caption: From Top Left: Issac Kwetok, OTML’s new Deputy General Manager for Processing, Hillary Turnamur, now Manager Process Operations, Beverly Pasen (Manager Finance), David Laulau (Manager Mine Technical Services), Dexter Wagambie (Manager Kiunga Operations), and Rueben Lapin who is now Manager of Business Continuity. As part of its vision to grow national leaders, Ok Tedi Mining Ltd (OTML) has named many of its national employees to leadership roles within the company. The appointments, according to OTML's Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Musje Werror, are in accordance with the company's Vision 2025, which was announced in late 2020. One of the Company's main goals is to nationalize its senior and executive management positions by 2025, and these appointments will help it achieve that goal. Isaac Kwetok, a qualified chemist from Telefomin in the Sandaun Province who is now the Deputy General Manager for Manufacturing, is one of the six nationals who have been selected. Kwetok joined OTML in 2003 and has worked in a variety of supervisory positions, the most recent of which was Manager Process Operations. Kwetok will now be in charge of Kiunga Operations, Manufacturing Operations, Processing Mechanical Maintenance, Process Stability, and Electrical Maintenance - Technical Services. Hillary Turnamur, who will serve as Manager – Process Operations, and Beverly Pasen, who will serve as Finance Manager, were also appointed. Turnamur has been with OTML since 2005 and previously served as the company's Kiunga Operations Manager, while Pasen served as the company's ICT Manager for the previous three years. Also appointed were David Laulau who has been named Manager Mine Technical Services, Rueben Lapin as the Manager Business Continuity, and Dexter Wagambie as Manager Kiunga Operations. Prior to their current positions, Laulau was the Bige Activities Manager at OTML, Lapin was the Mine Support Services Manager, and Wagambie was the Business Continuity Manager. “These are very important roles within OTML, and each of these individuals has had many years of management experience working at Ok Tedi, including other mines and industries within PNG and abroad,” Werror said. “These changes will provide these leaders with exposure to other areas of the business which is part of our leadership development program. I congratulate all of them and look forward to their contribution to make Ok Tedi the leading mining  company in PNG in the next 5 years as we continue to generate significant wealth for the people of  Western Province and Papua New Guinea.”

The Investment Promotion Authority (IPA) is committed to ensuring that the Investment Promotion Act is properly reviewed in order to carry out its mandated duties and obligations. This is to ensure that all international and domestic investments are encouraged and facilitated. In its second issue of the Opportunity Newsletter for 2021, the IPA said the suggested changes to the Investment Promotion Act would keep PNG open to foreign investment while improving mechanisms for updating the Cottage Business Activities List (CBAL), also known as the Reserved Activities List (RAL), and introducing a Restricted Activities List. The proposed amendments and subsequent legislation would define these practices. The changes also provide better review procedures for determining the practices are covered by these lists. Governance changes are being integrated into the amendments to strengthen IPA's ability to handle the international certification scheme as the first point of touch for foreign investors in PNG. The reforms will provide a host of regulations aimed at improving enforcement and oversight of individual certificate holders as well as the foreign investment scheme as a whole. This data is essential for promoting prudent foreign investment in PNG, as well as providing evidence for framework upgrades over time. The inclusion of the Registrar of Foreign Investment, a dedicated position responsible for the management of the foreign investment scheme in order to enhance overall compliance and oversight, is a major improvement. The reforms would modify the existing certification system by introducing a system close to that of corporation registration, with a simplified and faster international certification process. Obtaining an international credential after applying will currently take more than a month. The Registrar will accept registrations unless specified disqualifying requirements are met. This would give foreign investors more clarity about the forms of foreign investment that are permitted in the region. That would also allow for quicker international entity certification since the Registrar will be able to accept applications on a rolling basis. The review started in 2019 as part of the National Government's plan to help Micro, Small, and Medium-Sized Enterprises (MSMEs) develop and become the economy's backbone.

By the end of the year, the much-anticipated national demographic estimates and common roll update will be available. The National Statistics Office (NSO) gave this assurance when confirming that 95% of institutional listing has been achieved. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, Acting National Statistician John Igitoi stated that the NSO was committed to finishing the census and updating the popular roll by the end of the year. “We (NSO) have completed 95 per cent of the structural listing,” he said. “The remaining five per cent are the urban centres, including National Capital District. NCD will be hard because we have settlements and development all over the place.” He confirmed that structural listing for other cities would begin until the National Pandemic Controller has issued his approval. Igitoi reported that NSO field officers at the local government and district levels in the provinces have covered 95 per cent of PNG's rural areas. He stated that there was a recruiting campaign for enumerators in the provinces and that once that was completed, preparation for those field officers for the actual enumeration at the LLG level would begin. “The recruitment drive will be completed this month (April) and by next month, we will conduct training for master trainers, who will go to the provinces and conduct training-of-trainers,” Igitoi said. “These trainers will go down to their respective LLGs and train field officers, who are going to carry out the actual enumeration.” Despite COVID-19 interventions and financial constraints, he stated that the NSO would ensure that national population numbers are issued by the end of the year.

The effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on the prices of seasonal produce and medical services pushed annual inflation higher in the second half of 2020. Loi Bakani, the Governor of the Bank of PNG, said annual headline inflation was 5.1% in the December quarter of 2020. The annual key indexes of inflation, he said, had also risen. According to Bakani, the bank predicts annual headline inflation to be about 4.5 per cent in 2021, based on slowing inflation feed-through and relative exchange rate stability. The underlying inflation indexes, he said, are expected to be mild. Upside threats to these estimates, according to Bakani, include the effects of disturbances in domestic and global supply chains. He predicted that headline inflation will be about 4% in the medium term, indicating the relaxation of containment policies. According to Bakani, the board money supply rose by 7.0 per cent in 2020, owing to rises of 19.5 per cent in net foreign assets (NFA) and 4.5 per cent in net domestic assets (NDA), respectively. “The increases in NFA reflected external borrowings for the National Budget,” he said. “The increase in deposits at commercial banks was from liquidity injected by the government expenditure and monetary policy measures in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The additional liquidity did not translate into increased private sector credit, which was instead reinvested in COVID-19 treasury bonds and through secondary markets trading with the Central Bank.” Due to the sluggish economy, Bakani said the private sector's demand for credit remained poor. “Therefore, the exchange settlement account levels of commercial banks and liquidity in the banking system remain high,” he said. “To minimise the potential threat to price stability in the meantime, the Central Bank is managing liquidity through secondary market reading and the TAP facility for government securities, which was set up to encourage a savings culture. For 2021, the Ban forecasted an increase of 6.2 per cent in the broad money supply. This is mainly due to an increase of 8.6 per cent in NDA, which more than offset a decline NFA of 4.5 per cent. The increase in NDA is due to an increase in net claims on the central government of 16.0 per cent, which reflects government debt issuance and an increase in private sector credit (PSC) of 6.0 per cent. This increase in PSC is driven by the expected economic recovery. He added, “In line with these developments, the monetary base is projected to increase by 3.9 per cent.”

Ok Tedi Mining Limited (OTML) has announced that mine operations will resume on Thursday, April 1, 2021, after being briefly halted on March 19, 2021, due to a spike in COVID-19 cases found at the mine site. While the start-up of operations will be incremental, the ramp-up to full production is estimated to take up to two weeks, according to OTML Acting Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Kedi Ilimbit. Ilimbit said the company was able to repatriate workers that were no longer expected on site, limit people's travel, and perform a mass research exercise, which saw over 10,000 swab samples gathered from the employees and town inhabitants and sent to approved laboratories in Australia and PNG for review. The majority of the positive cases detected by these tests were asymptomatic and have since healed or been medically cleared, according to testing and isolation guidelines developed by the National Department of Health and the World Health Organisation. “The safety, health and wellbeing of our workforce, our communities, business partners and support service personnel continues to be our number one priority. The testing conducted during the temporary suspension of operations has been critical in ensuring a successful restart as scheduled,” Mr Ilimbit said. “Hence, our immediate focus now is to safely resume operations and ensure we effectively manage our COVID-19 control measures. Our Medical team, including all personnel who assisted with the mass testing, did a tremendous effort, which has enabled us to contain the spread of the virus and provide the necessary care to those who tested positive to COVID-19,” he said. Despite the prolonged halt of activities, the company anticipates a strong profit for the year.

Ok Tedi Mining Limited (OTML) has pledged PGK20 million to assist Papua New Guinea in combating the country's rising COVID-19 cases. Acting Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Kedi Ilimbit, OTML General Manager Community and Operations Support, made the statement in March 2021, adding that OTML's dedication reflects the company's sincerity in tackling PNG's worsening COVID-19 situation. Ilimbit said PGK10 million will go to the Port Moresby General Hospital and other government departments as decided by the National Government, while the remaining PGK10 million will go toward vaccine procurement, delivery, and roll-out in the Western Province, with preference provided to OTML employees, contractors, and people. “We will be working closely with the Sustainable Development Program (SDP) and the Western Province Health Authority to implement the COVID-19 vaccine roll-out plan in the Western Province,” Ilimbit said. “Ok Tedi is fully committed to take the lead and join forces with the Government, and other relevant agencies to address this pandemic that is affecting all of us. Our commitment demonstrates the same duty of care we have for our employees, to be extended to other Papua New Guineans, including our people of Western Province.”

Ok Tedi Mining Ltd (OTML) has added 40 new interns to its internship programs for 2021. Sixteen of the intakes will be part of the Graduate Development Scheme for two years, while the other 24 will be trade graduates who will complete a four-year apprenticeship program. OTML Managing Director and CEO, Musje Werror said, “Ok Tedi’s training programs are second to none and aimed at developing trainees to reach their full potential in their professional career paths and personal development.” Despite the fact that the recruitment drive was postponed due to the outbreak of the pandemic, he said that all trainees are on site and ready to join the Ok Tedi family. “The Training Centre is fully equipped to deliver high-quality training programs for both apprentices, graduates and employees which we have been doing for the past 32 years,” Werror said. One of the three main elements of OTML's commitment to developing a high-performing cohesive team is developing staff skills. He urged the newcomers to take advantage of the chance to start a new career and personal life. Werror said, “In life, you will be given opportunities, but how you approach these opportunities will determine where you end up.” Werror joined Ok Tedi as a fresh graduate from the University of Papua New Guinea thirty years ago, and today, as the managing director of the business, he is welcoming the new graduate trainees into OTML. Referring to Mr Werror’s story with OTML, Dauba Dauba, a graduate geologist from the University of Papua New Guinea said, “This in itself is an inspirational story for us.” At the programs' inception, 561 graduates and 1,194 tradesmen and women have graduated from their respective programs. Ok Tedi also provides the Preferred Area Development Training which is tailored for the locals in the Mine Preferred Areas. Manager, Organisational Development and Training, James Munro said, “We look forward to training another great batch of graduates and I encourage each and every one of you to work hard to succeed in this program.”

Following the completion of all terms with former joint venture partner Pan Pacific Copper to buy its 19% stake in the Misima gold project in Milne Bay, Kingston Resources Ltd now holds a 100% interest in the project. Kingston has received the final tranche of the overall consideration of AU$2 million (K4.31 million) since receiving all regulatory approvals from PNG (K5.23mil). Kingston now has 100 per cent control of the plant, according to an announcement made last week on the Australian stock exchange. The merger agreement was first revealed on November 12, 2019, and then revised on June 24, 2019. According to Kingston managing director Andrew Corbett, this was a fantastic result for shareholders and a significant step forward for the firm on its journey to becoming a new gold producer in Asia-Pacific. “The completion of this transaction provides Kingston with 100 per cent ownership of our flagship asset, which is rapidly progressing towards development,” he said. “Since we first acquired an initial 49 per cent interest in the Misima gold project back in late 2017, we delivered a number of key project milestones that culminated in the delivery of a highly positive pre-feasibility study (PFS) for Misima in 2020. This PFS clearly demonstrated that Misima is a large-scale, long-life, low-cost gold project that is set to deliver significant value and opportunities for all stakeholders. We have grown the initial resource base from 2.3Moz (million ounces) to 3.6Moz, delivered a maiden 1.35Moz ore reserve, and we expect both our resources and reserves to continue to grow through ongoing in-fill drilling and testing of exploration targets.” He added, “Completion of this acquisition provides Kingston with a streamlined and simplified ownership structure, providing a strong platform and added flexibility to continue checking off the necessary milestones to re-start gold production on Misima Island.”