Kingston Resources Ltd reaches an agreement to buy Pan Pacific Copper out of Misima gold project, Papua New Guinea’s new Minister for Environment and Conservation refutes previous investigations on Ramu Nico’s slurry spillage to the Basamuk, and PNG DataCo predicts a 42 per cent slash in internet prices. Your weekly digest of business news.

Misima operated as an open pit gold mine from 1989 to 2004. Credit: Placer Dome

Kingston Resources Ltd reached an agreement with Pan Pacific Copper to buy its 30 per cent in the Misima Gold Project. The acquisition makes Kingston the sole operator of Misima. The non-binding agreement specifies that Kingston can pay A$2.8 million (K6.5 million) in stages to its former joint venture partner. The initial payment of A$500,000 (K1.1 million) will be done in January 2020, and the balance is expected in April.

It has been reported that Misima has an indicated and inferred resource of 82.3 million tonnes at 1.1 grams per tonne gold and 5.3gpt silver for 2.8 million ounces of gold and 13.9Moz of silver. (Mining News)

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The new Minister for Environment and Conservation, Wera Mori, has refuted previous claims in relation with Ramu Nico’s Basamuk processing plant slurry spillage in Madang. Mori said that a separate team of researchers is conducting its investigations. Mori said: ‘The independent investigating team is [in] the process of conducting its investigations and as such refutes any claims done in relation to any conclusions on the status of the environment of Madang Province, following the Madang Provincial Government deliberations of the 6 to 9 November 2019.’ (EMTV)

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The Commercial General Manager of PNG DataCo, Une O’ Ome said that once the Coral Sea Cable is functioning, Papua New Guineans could see a 42 per cent reduction in wholesale internet prices. (EMTV)

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The PNG Coffee Industry Corporation has updated its Regulatory Policy Guidelines and Procedures. Coffee producers in the Mamose and Highlands regions, where the bulk of PNG Arabica coffee is produced, are getting training workshops to become familiarised with the new guidelines. (Post-Courier)

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Small businesses in Alotau, Milne Bay Province, have expressed their concerns about the continuous power interruptions in the province. Power has been out from 8am to 5pm and it has been reported the cuts will continue ‘for and indefinite period’. The outages have resulted from the ‘stop supply’ notice Puma Energy issued PNG Power because of lack of payment of past bills. (Post-Courier)

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The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a US$100 million (K345 million) loan to help PNG provide affordable and quality health services to its population. The loan will finance one of three subprograms of the Health Services Sector Development Program which the ADB approved in May 2018. (Post-Courier)

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The National Information and Communication Technology Authority (NICTA) has stopped the Subscriber Identification Module (SIM) registration program, which was supposed to be completed in March this year. According to Charles Punaha, NICTA’s CEO, the registration exercise was ended because there is a court litigation in place brought about by the Ombudsman Commission. (Post-Courier)

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Air Niugini Madang has won the best ‘On Time Performance (OTP)’ in the airline’s category A ports for the third quarter of 2019. Alan Milne, Air Niugini’s Managing Director, presented the award and congratulated Madang Port Manager Henrick Senat and his team for an excellent job in maintaining their performance. Milne said: ‘We must ensure to meet consumers’ expectations and deliver on time, every time, even if it means to exceed International Air Transport Association’s accepted benchmark of 85 per cent, but, at the same time, we must not compromise safety.’ (Air Niugini)

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MSC Cruises, one of the top five cruise companies in the world, will enter the PNG market in March 2020. The cruises will provide an influx of European tourists into the market. The Bureau Manager of Milne Bay Tourism, Sioni Sioni, said cruises provide the biggest part of tourism arrivals to the province. (Post-Courier)

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The National reported that Douglas Mageo, PNG Power’s Acting Chief Executive Officer, listed some projects that will generate electricity in PNG and help to reduce the load shedding exercise across the country. These are:

• New 45MW gas-powered station Dirio (expected to be commissioned in 2020)
• Rehabilitation of Warangoi (expected to return to service in September 2020)
• Rehabilitation work to restore Ramu One Yonki Toe of Dam (in processes)
• Ru-Creek and Lake Hargy Hydro (expected to be commissioned in November 2019)
• 3MW hydro-power (to be commissioned before the end of 2019)

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As part of Australia’s Pacific Step Up plan, Alex Hawke, the Australian Minister for International Development and the Pacific, inaugurated the Pacific Security College in Canberra. ‘The College will create a network of experienced security experts to act as a technical advice pool, supporting security development and implementation in Pacific Islands Forum countries,’ he explained. (RNZ)

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Photograph of the week

The PNG Kumuls celebrate after their historic win at the Oil Search National Football Stadium in Port Moresby. Credit: PNG Kumuls and Troy Taule/Facebook

The Kumuls surprised everyone delivering and incredible 28-10 win in the test match against Great Britain. This is the second time that PNG has defeated Great Britain – the first one was in 1990 in Goroka.

This has been an incredible year for PNG sports. Prime Minister Marape send a message to the nation after the match and said:

‘This evening my heart is lifted again for our country. When critics write us off, we still aspire to do better and the results of our national rugby league teams both Orchids and Kumuls in their test match against the visiting Great Britain team’s are testament to our abilities and resilience.

‘Our Kumuls and Orchids teams have lifted our spirits one more time. Likewise, very recently our National male Cricket team, Barramundis, has qualified for the 2020 World Cup on its own merits after competing amongst the world’s best.

‘We can overcome great challenges … just like our Rugby League and Cricket teams have done this year.’