Australians can now obtain a 30-day visa on arrival, Botten says Elk-Antelope could need at least two new LNG trains, and Treasurer confident cash flow enough for health, education and infrastructure spending. Your weekly digest of the latest business news.

Papua New Guinea has introduced a new tourist visa for Australians. Australian passport holders can now secure a 30-day free tourist visa on arrival. PNG  Tourism Promotion Authority CEO Jerry Agus says the decision is an important step forward for the tourism industry.

***

An independent certification of Elk-Antelope fields in Gulf Province has proven potential for at least two additional LNG trains in PNG, says Oil Search Managing Director, Peter Botten.

***

Treasurer Patrick Pruaitch

Treasurer Patrick Pruaitch has told EMTV the mid-year Budget Outlook Review will be released later this month, but said he was confident current cash flow is covering health, education and infrastructure spending. ‘If there is a need for us to look at reducing expenditure, the Review will tell us if that “is the right approach to take”,’ he said.

***

Pruaitch also told EMTV there has been ‘positive feedback’ from investors to presentations in Europe for PNG Government bonds, designed to support the Budget. He said he was hoping markets in Europe and the US would ‘help underwrite what we are doing’.

***

The Bougainville Parliament is meeting this week to discuss the decision by Rio Tinto to give its shares in Bougainville Copper Ltd to the Autonomous Bougainville Government and the national government. Bougainville Governor John Momis has described Rio’s decision as ‘disgusting’, adding Rio executives had refused to accept responsibility for the environmental and other damage done by the Panguna mine.

***

The PNG Parliament meets on Friday, 22 July, to vote on an Opposition motion of no-confidence in Prime Minister, Peter O’Neill. The vote follows a Supreme Court ruling ordering the vote.

***

State-owned enterprises (SOEs) are a significant drain on Pacific island economies, with the returns from most countries’ SOE portfolios not meeting their capital costs, according to an Asian Development Bank (ADB) report. The report finds SOE portfolios in the eight Pacific countries examined contributed ‘only 1.8-12 per cent to gross domestic product, despite their very large asset base, ongoing government cash transfers, and monopoly market positions’. It also finds productivity levels of the SOEs tend to be well below developed country benchmarks.

***

Dame Meg Taylor

Dame Meg Taylor, Secretary General of the Pacific Islands Forum, has called for development initiatives that focus on adaption to climate change and improvements in ocean management:

‘Our sea levels are rising, our water sources are being compromised and our coral reefs are dying. As we grapple with what is our new normal, we will require increased investment in climate proofing infrastructure and improved disaster risk insurance that is part of our national development planning and budgeting.’

***

Singapore-listed company Lifebrandz has announced it will be entering into a non-binding term sheet with Asidokona Mining Resources for the proposed acquisition of Tolukuma Gold Mines. Tolukuma is a wholly owned subsidiary of Asidokona.

***

PNG has great potential for investment and ‘we’re anxious to do more here in PNG,’ US Export Import Bank Chairman and President Fred Hochberg told a media conference in Port Moresby. He said he is also looking for opportunities in power, water, and healthcare investments.

***

A renewed outbreak of the Bogia disease is threatening a coconut gene bank in Madang Province, according to Radio NZ International. Coconut Industry Corporation Manager, Allen Aku, said research was underway to isolate the insect that is spreading the disease.

***

Harmony Gold has announced that it met its annual production guidance of approximately 1.1 million ounces.

***

ANU’s Stephen Howes

A World Bank report says the full potential of labour mobility between Australia, NZ, and the Pacific region remains largely untapped. The Bank, in association with the Australian National University, found 240,000 more Pacific Islanders could potentially migrate abroad by 2040. ANU’s Professor Stephen Howes said labour mobility was critical for the future of the Pacific.

***

And finally, the iconic Aggie Grey’s Hotel in the centre of Samoa’s capital city, Apia, will reopen its doors in August as The Sheraton Samoa Aggie Grey’s Hotel and Bungalows.