Milne Bay’s Woodlark Gold Project is likely to get the go ahead within the next three months, after developer Geopacific Resources assesses the definitive feasibility study which will be completed in Q3 this year. Managing Director, Ron Heeks, told Business Advantage PNG, if it goes ahead, production should commence in early 2020.
Industry sectors
PNG Biomass will reach a final investment decision in the fourth quarter of 2018 for its proposed power plant located in the Markham Valley, Project Director Michael Henson tells Business Advantage PNG.
The co-founder of Port Moresby based software company Crysan, Crystal Krewe said a partnership with Google, the APEC Secretariats in PNG and Singapore, and the San Francisco-based Asia Foundation will aim to sell bilums on-line. Called the Digital Bilum Project, the aim will be to create an international presence.
In a slow economy getting jobs in the formal sector can prove difficult. But Rohan Fox, a Researcher at the Australian National University’s Crawford Policy Centre, says his research suggests that graduates of the University of Papua New Guinea do find employment.
PNG Power is aiming to cut tariffs by half and electrify 70 per cent of the country in the next five to 10 years according to Acting Managing Director Carolyn Blacklock. But to achieve those goals the organisation will require a new ‘business model’ she says.
A departure from Nautilus Minerals
Papua New Guinea’s LNG exports will more than double over the next 10 years, as a result of the planned expansion works, according to Fitch Solutions’ Senior Country Risk Analyst, Raphael Mok. But, he tells Business Advantage PNG, the government must address landowners’ backlash against royalty payments.
Papua New Guinea has opportunities in the emerging methods of capturing carbon, climate change expert Professor Tim Flannery told the Business Advantage Papua New Guinea Investment Conference in Brisbane. He pointed to forests, soil, marine and biomass as potential commercial areas.
After the successful launches of sustainable small businesses in Vanuatu and Samoa, a donor-funded private sector initiative is preparing to expand into Papua New Guinea. Anna Moegerlein from Melbourne’s The Difference Incubator explains the initiative to Business Advantage PNG.
There is growing interest in improving the way projects are managed in Papua New Guinea, according to Ian McMahon, Managing Director of the Australian Institute of Project Management. He outlines the key elements of a successful project.