An investigation has cleared Horizon Oil of any wrongdoings in Papua New Guinea, PNG amends Oil and Gas Act and NASFUND revamps its image. The business news you need to kickstart your week.

PNG’s National Superannuation Fund (NASFUND) has made public its new logo and tagline. Credit: LOOP

Aviation

The State Enterprise Minister Sasindran Muthuvel said that Air Niugini is in ‘dire need for more capital injection and also support to mitigate its economic slowdown.’ He suggested that the airline will need K300 million to revive its fleet and operations. (The National)

Agriculture

According to global vanilla buyer Aust and Hachmann in its May 2020 market report, more PNG vanilla is being used in industrial production. This reflects a positive movement away from the gourmet sector. ‘Although PNG is heavily dependent of the food service sector (gourmet vanilla), there have been signs that extraction-grade PNG vanilla is becoming more viable on an industrial scale, especially when blended with vanilla of Indonesian origin just across the border,’ said the report. Despite the COVID-19 challenges, it’s expected PNG will produce about 200mt of vanilla this year.

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Less than six months after its establishment, Eastern Highland’s Rumbia Coffee Exports has sent 300 bags of green bean coffee to South Korea. The bags will earn the farmers K250,000. ‘To arrive at the first export and getting higher price for the coffee produced is historical,’ said Governor Peter Numu. (The National)

Superannuation

PNG’s National Superannuation Fund, NASFUND, has unveiled its new logo and business slogan ‘ready for tomorrow’. Its Chief Executive Officer, Ian Tarutia, said: ‘The new logo signifies progress and change and the desire to continuously improve and, more importantly, reflects the future of the fund and where we want to be.’ (Post-Courier)

Resources

Inside the National Parliament of Papua New Guinea. Credit: BAI

In a push to obtain more benefits for PNG, Parliament has passed changes to its oil and gas laws. The new laws will have an impact on how future oil and gas projects in PNG are developed. (Business Advantage PNG)

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The ASX-listed company Horizon Oil announced that the investigation into Horizon’s K33 million payment to acquire an interest in Petroleum Retention Licence 21 in Western Province has concluded. The investigation cleared Horizon of any wrongdoing. Its Chairman, Mike Harding, said: ‘The investigation conducted by two highly reputable firms, has now concluded. No breach of Australian foreign bribery laws has been established. We recognise and regret the impact of these allegations.’ (Horizon Oil)

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According to the Post-Courier, Morobe Governor Ginson Saonu confirmed that the negotiations for the Wafi-Golpu mine project have started. ‘We are now working on getting the landowners’ ILG in place and we will go with individual clans so that we identify genuine landowners instead of the association which do [sic] not own the land.’

Infrastructure

Last week all PNG transport sector agencies and development partners attended the APEC Peer Review on Quality infrastructure workshop to assess infrastructure development in the country. PNG has plans too connect all the country through roads, electricity and communications networks and is working on its Infrastructure Development Program 2020-2040. Roy Mumu, Secretary for the Department of Transport, reportedly said that one of the ways in which the government can look at funding the projects is through public private partnerships (PPP). LOOP PNG