State-owned enterprises in Papua New Guinea
An overview of Papua New Guinea’s state-owned or ‘Kumul’ enterprises and investment companies, including its national oil and mining companies, utilities, national airline and telecommunications company.
Kumul Consolidated Holdings manages all of PNG’s non-petroleum and non-mining state-owned assets, including Air Niugini. Credit: Air Niugini.
Following reforms over the past decade, Papua New Guinea’s state-owned enterprises are organised under a structure known as the Kumul group of companies, which has the PNG State as its sole shareholder.
The Kumul companies cover not only essential infrastructure such as aviation, water supply, electricity transmission, ports administration and postal services, but also enterprises established to foster development of particular sectors of PNG’s economy, such as mining, petroleum and agriculture.
Thus, many of these state-owned companies are potential partners to investors seeking to invest in particular sectors of PNG’s economy. In some instances, such as electricity generation and port management, some of the mandated functions of PNG’s state-owned entities have been outsourced to the private sector.
Profiles of the individual Kumul companies follow below.
Kumul Petroleum Holdings Ltd
Kumul Petroleum Holdings Ltd (KPHL), formerly known as the National Petroleum Company of PNG, is PNG’s national oil company. It was created under Kumul Petroleum Holdings Limited Authorisation Act 2015.
KPHL is the legislated State nominee for all projects in the petroleum sector and has the option to take up to a 22.5% stake in every project. It is currently responsible for managing the State’s 19.4% equity in the ExxonMobil-led PNG LNG Project through its subsidiary Kumul Petroleum (PNG LNG) Limited. It also owns petroleum retention licences – PRLs 47, 48, 49 and 50, covering the Pandora, Kimu, Barikewa and Uramu petroleum fields.
KPHL also runs the Kumul Petroleum Academy, while its subsidiary Kumul Energy has a joint venture, Niupower Limited, with Oil Search to run a 58MW gas-fired power station in Port Moresby.
Further information
Kumul Minerals Holdings Limited
Kumul Minerals Holdings Ltd (KMHL), rebranded in 2016 from the former Petromin PNG Holdings, is the sister company to Kumul Petroleum.
It is the legislated State nominee for all projects in the mining sector and has the option to take up to a 20% stake in all significant new projects.
Currently, its holds a 67% share in Ok Tedi Mining Ltd, the operator of the Ok Tedi copper mine in Western Province, and a 36% share in New Porgera Limited, the operator of the Porgera gold mine in Enga Province.
At time of writing, it also had an agreement with Australian miner St Barbara to acquire a 20 per cent share in a new joint venture that will own St Barbara’s previously 100%-owned Simberi gold mine in New Ireland Province. The agreement was expected to be finalised in April 2026.
Further information
Kumul Consolidated Holdings
Kumul Consolidated Holdings (KCH) is the entity which holds in trust PNG’s non-petroleum and non-mining assets. Formerly known as the Independent Public Business Corporation, it is mandated ‘to hold all government-owned commercial assets and to manage those assets to improve commercial performance and underpin economic development.’
It falls under the portfolio of PNG’s Minister of State Enterprises and Public Investments and is arguably a de facto ministerial department.
KCH currently manages the following state-owned enterprises:
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- Air Niugini (PNG’s national airline)
- Motor Vehicle Insurance Ltd (compulsory third party insurance)
- National Development Bank
- PNG Ports (which manages PNG’s 15 gazetted ports)
- PNG Power (electricity company)
- Post PNG
- Kumul Agriculture
- PNG DataCo (which manages the National Transmission Network)
- Telikom Ltd (formed out of the merger of telcos Telikom PNG and Bmobile)
- Water PNG
The KCH portfolio of companies is currently undergoing reforms, underpinned by technical assistance from the Asian Development Bank. These reforms are aimed at improving governance, transparency and competition and have already seen amendments (in 2021) to the Kumul Consolidated Holdings Authorisation Act.
Privatisations are also in play for a number of KCH subsidiaries including Air Niugini, PNG Power and Telikom Ltd.
Further information
www.kch.com.pg (this site also helpfully provides downloadable copies of relevant legislation)
Minerals Resources Development Corporation (MRDC)
Although not strictly speaking a ‘Kumul’ company, Minerals Resources Development Corporation is also wholly owned by the PNG State.
Its unique role is to manage the mandated project benefits granted to landowners and provincial governments from PNG’s resources projects.
The MRDC manages the royalties from minority stakes in various mining, oil and gas projects on behalf of these stakeholders, including:
- The Ok Tedi, Porgera and Ramu mines
- The Moran, Gobe and Kutubu oil fields
- The Hides, Juha, Angore, Kutu, Moran gas fields
MRDC plays an active role as an investor on behalf of its stakeholders. Major investments include Star Mountain Plaza, a mixed-use development in Port Moresby including the 5-Star Hilton Hotel and Residences, as well as power generation company Dirio Gas and Power.
Further information
