Friday, November 30, 2012

InterOil executes joint venture operating agreement With Pacific Rubiales

By InterOil Corporation

PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea and HOUSTON, Nov. 29, 2012 -- PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea and HOUSTON, Nov. 29, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- InterOil Corporation (NYSE:IOC) (POMSoX:IOC) ("InterOil" or the "Company") announced that negotiations have been completed and the parties have executed the Joint Venture Operating Agreement (JVOA) and related documents associated with its Farm-In Agreement with Pacific Rubiales Energy Corp. (TSX:PRE; BVC: PREC; BOVESPA: PREB) ("PRE"), pursuant to which PRE will acquire a 10.0% net (12.9% gross) participating interest in Petroleum Prospecting License 237 ("PPL 237") onshore Papua New Guinea, including the Triceratops structure and exploration acreage located within that license.
This announcement is made further to the Company's announcement on July 30, 2012 that it had executed a Farm-In Agreement with PRE.
Signing of the JVOA and related documentation accomplishes one of the key milestones to final completion of the Farm-In transaction, which remains subject to previously announced closing conditions and approvals.
"InterOil and its partners are pleased to have completed the JVOA with Pacific Rubiales Energy. The process has enhanced our working relationship and commitment to a mutually beneficial joint venture," stated Mr. Phil Mulacek, Chief Executive Officer of InterOil.

About InterOil InterOil Corporation is developing a vertically integrated energy business whose primary focus is Papua New Guinea and the surrounding region. InterOil's assets consist of petroleum licenses covering about 3.9 million acres, an oil refinery, and retail and commercial distribution facilities, all located in Papua New Guinea. In addition, InterOil is a shareholder in a joint venture established to construct liquefaction facilities in Papua New Guinea.
InterOil's common shares trade on the NYSE in US dollars.

Thursday, November 29, 2012

PNG embraces the Asian century

AAP

Papua New Guinea's PM Peter O'Neill says his country intends to take advantage of the Asian century. Source: AAP

PAPUA New Guinea intends to take advantage of the Asian century and will soon count China as its second-biggest trading partner after Australia, the country's leader says.

PNG Prime Minister Peter O'Neill says the Pacific nation wants to establish itself as a key energy, minerals and food exporter to the Asian region.
His government would devote billions to roads, law and order, airports and ports over the coming years to ensure rural and coastal Papua New Guineans could move beyond producing only for local markets and that liquefied natural gas transport would be secure.
"Clearly we are well placed to help meet the growing demands of energy by the Asian region, but it is not going to be without significant challenges," he told the Lowy Institute for International Policy in Sydney today.
He said lifting productivity, including agricultural output, would be chief among these challenges.
PNG's relationship with Indonesia - with which it shares a major border - remained crucial, Mr O'Neill said.
"But our fastest growing relationship is with the People's Republic of China," he said, adding that China was on track to eclipse all other trade partners but Australia.
Mr O'Neill stressed that the burgeoning relationship between PNG and China centred on trade and investment, not security or defence.
"We feel that the security issues that have been expressed by many of our traditional partners is unnecessary, we are following the same path that Australia and New Zealand have taken by increasing our relationship with China in trade and investment," he said.
Ties between Port Moresby and Canberra would remain strong, he said.
"I have no doubt whatsoever that the relationship between PNG and Australia will continue to grow," Mr O'Neill said.

PNG has interest in BHP Biliton AGM today

Sydney Morning Herald

THE tenure of BHP Billiton chief executive Marius Kloppers is expected to dominate the company's annual meeting with Australian shareholders in Sydney today.

Proxy advisers have given the company a clean bill of health while big shareholders are also much happier about the level of consultation with investors than they were a year ago, meaning Mr Kloppers' future looms as the elephant in the room.

BHP Billiton chief executive Marius Kloppers

Environmental and social activists have flocked to Sydney ahead of the event, with social media suggesting some have travelled from South America and Papua New Guinea.

PNG is home to the Ok Tedi copper mine that BHP handed over more than a decade ago after an environmental controversy.

Speaking in Canberra on Wednesday, PNG Prime Minister Peter O'Neill said BHP was still influencing the fund that now controls Ok Tedi, and urged the company to keep its distance.

''There is no longer a valid reason for it to continue to exercise any control over the board appointments to that fund,'' he said.

Top executives from rival miner Rio Tinto are also in Sydney on Thursday, with the company hosting a long-awaited investor briefing.

Multiple analysts believe the briefing could see costs rise on the company's iron ore expansion plans in the Pilbara.

The expansion to 353 million tonnes of exports each year is believed to be ahead of schedule, but the persistently high Australian dollar is tipped to cause a cost blowout compared with original estimates.

Rio has long suggested that overall capital spending in 2013 will be around $US14 billion, but that number is expected to be revised.

The meeting will also be one of the first major outings for Rio's new diamonds boss Alan Davies, and investors will watch closely for any update on the company's plan to divest its diamond assets.

Rio has been considering a divestment or restructure of its diamond assets since March, and some have speculated that more value could be generated by spinning them out into an IPO rather than selling them to the highest bidder.

PNG calls for changes to Aussie aid

By Adam Gartrell

AAP Diplomatic Correspondent

Papua New Guinea's leader wants Australia to rethink its aid spending in his impoverished nation, calling for a greater focus on big-ticket infrastructure projects like roads and ports.

PNG Prime Minister Peter O'Neill has also called for a shake-up in trade and investment links between the two nations.

Mr O'Neill says the PNG-Australia relationship is currently in "good shape" but has warned against complacency.

He said while he welcomed Australia's generous development assistance to PNG - totalling close to $500 million in 2012/12 - he wants to see it more closely aligned with his government's priorities.

The country is in "dire need" of better economic infrastructure like roads, ports and airports, he said.

"To effectively deliver on these priorities would require a total realignment of the aid program, from small projects in diverse range of areas to major infrastructure projects," he told the National Press Club in Canberra ysterday.

"I know there will be some in the aid program who will be horrified by this suggestion.

"But if we are going to make sure your aid genuinely supports our economic and social development and helps us guarantee our security and stability we simply must make sure it is more targeted to align with our priorities."

Australia's aid program in PNG currently focuses more on needs like health, education and governance.

China had made great inroads into the South Pacific region by funding infrastructure projects but Mr O'Neill insisted the Chinese aid footprint in his nation was very small - although he would welcome more.

Mr O'Neill said he did not want to suggest AusAID's current programs were not working, simply that they were spread too thin.

The prime minister said there was also need for a "new focus" on trade and investment. There is currently significant Australian investment in resources projects but Mr O'Neill wants more diversity.

"I would like to see a greater focus on two or three areas in our economy where there is a lack of competition and where we want to see strong investment in the near future," he said, nominating construction and agriculture.

Mr O'Neill also criticised Australian media coverage of PNG, particularly claims that his country is a failed or failing state.

"This is just simply wrong," he said, describing the claims as "harmful" and "hurtful".

PNG calls for changes to Aussie aid

Date: November 28, 2012 - 1:24PM

Adam Gartrell, AAP Diplomatic Correspondent

AAP
Papua New Guinea's leader wants Australia to rethink its aid spending in his impoverished nation, calling for a greater focus on big-ticket infrastructure projects like roads and ports.
PNG Prime Minister Peter O'Neill has also called for a shake-up in trade and investment links between the two nations.
Mr O'Neill says the PNG-Australia relationship is currently in "good shape" but has warned against complacency.
He said while he welcomed Australia's generous development assistance to PNG - totalling close to $500 million in 2012/12 - he wants to see it more closely aligned with his government's priorities.
The country is in "dire need" of better economic infrastructure like roads, ports and airports, he said.
"To effectively deliver on these priorities would require a total realignment of the aid program, from small projects in diverse range of areas to major infrastructure projects," he told the National Press Club in Canberra on Wednesday.
"I know there will be some in the aid program who will be horrified by this suggestion.
"But if we are going to make sure your aid genuinely supports our economic and social development and helps us guarantee our security and stability we simply must make sure it is more targeted to align with our priorities."
Australia's aid program in PNG currently focuses more on needs like health, education and governance.
China had made great inroads into the South Pacific region by funding infrastructure projects but Mr O'Neill insisted the Chinese aid footprint in his nation was very small - although he would welcome more.
Mr O'Neill said he did not want to suggest AusAID's current programs were not working, simply that they were spread too thin.
The prime minister said there was also need for a "new focus" on trade and investment. There is currently significant Australian investment in resources projects but Mr O'Neill wants more diversity.
"I would like to see a greater focus on two or three areas in our economy where there is a lack of competition and where we want to see strong investment in the near future," he said, nominating construction and agriculture.
Mr O'Neill also criticised Australian media coverage of PNG, particularly claims that his country is a failed or failing state.
"This is just simply wrong," he said, describing the claims as "harmful" and "hurtful".

PNG calls for changes to Aussie aid

Date: November 28, 2012 - 1:24PM

Adam Gartrell, AAP Diplomatic Correspondent

PNG calls for changes to Aussie aid

Date: November 28, 2012 - 1:24PM

Adam Gartrell, AAP Diplomatic Correspondent

Wednesday, November 28, 2012

In Port Moresby today

Pictures by MALUM NALU

Here are pictures of my wanderings through Port Moresby today, a prodigal son back home, after three weeks away in Taipei, Taiwan.
Sit back, relax, and enjoy:

I noticed today that the Union Jacks - which went up with much fanfare for Charles and Camilla - are already becoming tattered at the edges! Save us the embarassment, Justin, and do some pole climbing! Oh, and as a last word, God Save the Queen!

Cruizin down the freeway!

View from The Lodge towards Downtown Port Moresby

The big boys of Port Moresby...Crowne Plaza, Grand Papua, and Deloittes Towers as seen from The Lodge

Ela Beach as seen from The Lodge

The observatory at Ela Beach as seen from The Lodge

The big boys...again

Just in time for Christmas...I loved this bloom in Downtown Port Moresby

Crowne Plaza

But we could do with a lot of improvement in the rubbish department

Another new building looking from town towards Ela Beach

At the crossroads

ANZ Harbour City

PNG stands firm on Ross Garnaut ban

By Adam Gartrell

AAP Diplomatic Correspondent

Papua New Guinea's leader is standing firm on his decision to ban Australian climate change adviser Ross Garnaut from entering his country.

PNG Prime Minister Peter O'Neill maintains Professor Garnaut insulted his nation's leaders during a media interview and is no longer welcome there.

In happier days...Garnaut (left) and Western Governor Ati Wobiro sign at agreement in Tabubil on Saturday, September 1, 2012.-Picture by MALUM NALU

Prof Garnaut, who is chairman of Ok Tedi Mining, was quoted by The Australian newspaper as saying that with such an accumulation of wealth in PNG, it was "tempting for political figures to think of better ways of using it right now rather than putting it into long-term development".
Mr O'Neill said Prof Garnaut's statement was not true and could damage his country's reputation.

"As a leader of the country I cannot stand by and allow comments like those to continue," he told reporters at the National Press Club in Canberra today.
"It was irresponsible. He has to take ownership of that statement."
Mr O'Neill says his government has sought an explanation.
"Some of the explanations he's given to us are not acceptable to us," Mr O'Neill said.
Mr O'Neill has previously said Prof Garnaut, who until recently was also chairman of the PNG Sustainable Development Fund (PNGDF) trust, would not be allowed back in until control of the Ok Tedi mine was given back to the PNG people.
The trust was given ownership of the Ok Tedi mine, located in PNG's Western Province, by mining giant BHP Billiton.
Mr O'Neill claims BHP is running the PNGSDF by remote control from Melbourne and has questioned whether the 37-year-old nation had benefited from the project.
The prime minister on Wednesday reiterated his call for BHP to back off.
"There is no longer a valid reason for it to continue to exercise any control over the board appointments to that fund," he said.

PNG Prime Minister promises political stability, corruption crackdown

By James Grubel of Reuters

Papua New Guinea's Prime Minister Peter O'Neill promised today to bring stability to the revolving door of Papua New Guinea politics and to crack down on corruption as his government courts multi-billion dollar resources investments.
O'Neill and rival Sir Michael Somare had both claimed to be the leader of the South Pacific island nation last year, turmoil typical of PNG politics, before O'Neill was re-elected in August.
In the middle of that crisis, corruption watchdog Transparency International ranked PNG 154th out of 183 nations on its global graft index released a year ago, only beating out countries like Somalia, North Korea and Afghanistan.
"We have to fight corruption. Corruption is like a cancer. If it is not detected, it simply grows and grows," O'Neill told the National Press Club in the Australian capital, Canberra.
"If not reduced, it undermines our efforts to maintain political stability and social cohesion. It is also a strong deterrent to good foreign investment."
On his first visit to PNG's former colonial ruler Australia since his re-election, O'Neill said an anti-corruption commission should start operating next year.
A special task force -- known as Sweep -- has been investigating graft for the past year and is looking into more than 170 complaints involving around $1 billion of public funds.
PNG, a nation of around 6.5 million people, is going through a resources boom and is home to a $15.7 billion Exxon Mobil gas export project, which is due to start production in 2014 and boost GDP by around 20 percent. There is also the vast OK Tedi copper mine and the Frieda River copper project run by Swiss-based global miner Xstrata.
Despite such abundant mineral wealth, successive governments have been unable to deliver infrastructure or services to the people, around 80 percent of whom eke out subsistence livings of village farming and small cash crops.
Task force Sweep's chairman Sam Koim has targeted politicians and officials who have invested money in the tropical northern Australian city of Cairns, describing Australia as the money-laundering destination of choice.
O'Neill said that, as well as plans for the new anti-corruption body early in 2013, parliament was also working on political stability. New laws that will guarantee a grace period of 30 months before a government can face a no-confidence motion, instead of the current 18 month, have passed the first stage of the legislative process, he said.
To win power in PNG, leaders must cobble together a range of lawmakers and parties to form a coalition. Lawmakers often change allegiances if offered better jobs from rival parties or leaders, which creates uncertainty and instability.
O'Neill said that, since PNG gained independence from Australia in 1975, many governments had faced challenges as early as six months into their terms, even though elections are only held every five years.
"That has not created stability at all. It does not give confidence to any investor to invest in an environment as such," he said. O'Neill hoped the new 30-month grace period would ease investors' concerns.