Investing in Papua New Guinea: five things to watch in 2026
In what is shaping up to be a big year for the Papua New Guinea economy, Business Advantage PNG lists five key focus areas to look out for in the country’s investment space in 2026.
Investment trends were a major focus of the 2025 Business Advantage PNG Investment Conference. The 2026 conference will take place in Brisbane, Australia on 10 and 11 August. Credit: Stefan Daniljchenko/BAI
1. Mergers and acquisitions
High metals prices and an increased appetite from state-owned entities are driving M&A activity in PNG’s mining sector.
Elsewhere in the economy, established PNG businesses have also been changing hands.
In retail, Australia’s Taylor Pacific last year acquired the Stop & Shop supermarket chain from the CPL Group, its second major PNG acquisition in two years.
“The enactment of the arbitration legislation is a game changer for PNG.”
Meanwhile, landowner company Trans Wonderland Ltd has reached a deal to acquire Avenell Engineering Systems, a family-owned logistics business with a 70-year history in PNG.
With more financial institutions obtaining banking licences in PNG and future consolidation likely, M&A activity in the finance sector looks likely to increase.
Arguably the most interesting recent investment is Kina Bank’s US$5 million (K21 million) acquisition of 17 per cent of fintech business NiuPay – the largest fintech investment so far in PNG and a harbinger of greater competition in the hotly contested digital banking space.
In the longer term, the planned privatisation of state-owned entities such as PNG Power, Telikom PNG and Air Niugini remains an area to watch.
2. Special Economic Zones
PNG’s government sees the development of Special Economic Zones as one of the key drivers of future economic growth and jobs creation.
Focused on encouraging downstream processing and value-adding, the zones offer significant long-term tax concessions to both the investors who develop the zones and businesses that subsequently locate in them.
More than 20 potential zones have been identified across the country, an independent Special Economic Zone Authority (SEZA) has been created and enabling legislation has been passed to facilitate and assess potential zone developments.
Four zones have so far been fully licensed, but there is a significant pipeline of applications, several of which have already received in-principle approval from PNG’s National Executive Council.
3. Geopolitics
PNG’s location at the intersection of Asian and Pacific markets means it continues to receive significant interest from the region’s key powers.
Former colonial power Australia in particular continues to play an important role, supporting investments in telecommunications and port infrastructure. It is also providing A$600 million over ten years to support PNG’s 2028 entry into Australia’s National Rugby League competition.
In 2025, PNG’s relationship with Australia undertook a step change with the signing of the Pukpuk mutual defence treaty, which will trigger significant investments in military and supporting infrastructure in PNG in coming years.
4. Arbitration reform
Wavie Kendino Leki of Dentons law firm. Credit: Stefan Daniljchenko/BAI
PNG has recently adopted a new arbitration framework to resolve business disputes, enabling investors to sidestep potentially costly and lengthy legal disputes.
Wavie Kendino Leki, Managing Partner with the Dentons law firm in PNG, explains the benefits.
“In our experience, investors are primarily concerned with two main things when they’re investing in a country: the return on investment and, if any issues arise, how their disputes will be dealt with,” she says.
“The enactment of the arbitration legislation is a game changer for PNG. It offers reassurance to investors of a more efficient and confidential dispute resolution framework.”
5. Green finance
In September 2025, the International Finance Corporation announced a US$10.2 million (K43.6 million) investment in PNG-owned Total Waste Management to develop the first integrated waste facility in the country to meet international standards.
The Bank of PNG has launched the Green Finance Centre in partnership with the Global Green Growth Institute to mobilise new sources of finance for sustainable projects, which looks set to include green bonds and a renewable energy facility.
It has already identified a K270 million pipeline of potential green investments.
This piece was first published in the 2026 edition of the Business Advantage PNG Annual. You can read the full issue here.
