The coming year looks promising for Papua New Guinea business, with the giant PNG LNG project due to commence gas exports, and further investments looking likely. Meanwhile, eyes are on the O’Neill Government to see how it can improve the operating environment for business. Business Advantage PNG looks ahead to consider what 2014 may bring.
The Treasurer is about to present the 2014 Budget to Parliament, after a challenging year for Papua New Guinea and its government. Paul Barker looks at what next year’s Budget should contain.
Trade Minister, Richard Maru, has amended Papua New Guinea’s takeover code, introducing a new national interest test for anyone acquiring shares in PNG companies. The law firms who represented Kulim (Malaysia) Berhad in its recent failed bid for New Britain Palm Oil say the lack of definition about what is ‘the national interest’ will discourage foreign investment in PNG and PNG companies.
While its bullish prediction of US$23 billion in export earnings for Papua New Guinea by 2030 may have garnered the headlines, there’s a lot more to ANZ’s ‘Bold Thinking: Imagining PNG in the Asian Century’ report, released this week.
Last week’s legislation to nationalise the PNG Sustainable Development Program (PNGSDP) and Ok Tedi Mining Limited carries severe risks and negative implications for development in PNG, writes Stephen Howes, Director of the Development Policy Centre at the Australian National University.
While its aims of encouraging small and indigenous business are universally supported, the Papua New Guinea Government’s recent dealings with investors have created a ‘feeling of unease’ in some business circles.
There’s a new Liberal-National Coalition government in Canberra, led by Tony Abbott. Jenny Hayward-Jones considers the implications for Papua New Guinea and the Pacific.
Papua New Guinea’s Treasurer Don Poyle has called for more public-private partnerships to drive the PNG economy. As the O’Neill government prepares to create an umbrella trust to oversee State-Owned Enterprises and their partnerships with private enterprise, Rowan Callick lays out the test for their success.
Papua New Guinea’s Treasurer Don Polye gave a comprehensive update on the nation’s economic outlook last week. We asked analysts for their reaction.
The signing of the Regional Resettlement Arrangement between Australia and Papua New Guinea has changed the nature of the bilateral relationship, says the Lowy Institute’s Jenny Hayward-Jones.