PAPUA New Guinea is set to benefit from the Papua LNG to the tune of K86 billion from the life of the project, an official says.
Total Energies PNG Ltd managing director Jean-Marc Noiray made the remarks last week at the induction programme for Members of Parliament in Port Moresby. He said this when acknowledging the country’s laws and regulations that governed resource projects as some of the best in the world.
Noiray said local laws recognised landowners and put the State and people in a strong position.
“From a regulatory point of view, we have done all that was needed, we have the gas agreement which secures the fiscal and regulatory terms,” he told MPs.
“They are stabilised in a fiscal stability agreement with all the amendments that were required. So we are ready to go.”
Noiray said the State would receive between 50 to 55 per cent of the value of the project over its life.
“The higher the price of the gas, the more the shareholders are going to get,” he added.
“The direct value going to the State we reckon will be in the order and value of US$25 billion (K86 billion) over the life of the project.
“Just half of that is direct from what the developer will pay in terms of income tax than we have other direct taxes that will be paid, the workforce for example which we reckon is in US$3 billion (K10 billion) and indirect benefit in the order of US$8 billon (K27 billion) going to the country.
“All those numbers, we will round them up and will be in the file that we will give to the authorities to try to get our different licenses.
“We are keen to start contributing big to the country and to help the country and its citizens and local communities.”
TheNational/PacificMiningWatch
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