In brief: Kumul Telikom Holdings announces major price reductions on internet rates

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Kumul Telikom Holdings has slashed internet rates,  Kumul Petroleum Holdings has been asked to report on its earnings since 2014 and a cable ship has arrived in Port Moresby to work on the Coral Sea Cable system. Your weekly digest of business news.

in briefThe state-owned telco Kumul Telikom Holdings has announced it will reduce the prices of data bundles between 70 and 80 per cent.

During the announcement, Communication and Energy Minister Renbo Paita said: ‘I am therefore pleased to announce that today marks an occasion for the people of PNG, we will now enjoy major reductions in fixed mobile data by the Kumul Telikom Holdings through its subsidies Bmobile and Telikom PNG.’ (The National)

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Representatives of the state-owned enterprise Kumul Petroleum Holdings Limited (KPHL) have been asked to report on the company’s earnings since 2014, ‘when the first gas came out’. Prime Minister James Marape reportedly said ‘KPHL is now on notice to prepare their books and present to us.’ (LOOP)

Cable on board the Ile de Brehat. Credit: Australian High Commission PNG

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The cable ship Ile De Brehat has started the first phase of the Coral Sea Cable System project from Port Moresby to Sydney. The ship has been in Port Moresby since last week. Communication and Energy Minister Renbo Paita mentioned in a statement: ‘The arrival of the vessel Ile De Brehat and the cable landing in Port Moresby shows that the completion of this project is on target for the end of the year as planned.’ (Post-Courier)

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Kada Poroman Microfinance Limited (KPML) has opened a ‘branchless facility’ in Kokopo that contains tablets and Bluetooth printers to help customers in the area with their banking needs. (Post-Courier)
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Last week, National Planning Minister Richard Maru reportedly told Parliament the Central Bank ‘needed to establish a credit corporation to help grow small and medium enterprises (SMEs)’. ‘Up to now, the Central Bank has not moved the agenda,’ said Maru. ‘Without our people being given guarantees to secure loans to start or grow their business … we cannot grow the SME sector.’ (The National)
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As part of the reforms in the National Procurement Act, Finance Secretary Ken Ngangan has said his department will roll out an e-procurement system with an integrated financial system to provide a transparent framework. According to The National, the donors and development partners are the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and the Asian Development Bank. (The National)
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Sergie Bang, Director-General of The National Agriculture Research Institute (NARI), said there are plans to develop farmer resource centres throughout the country. During the opening of a resource centre in Atupan village in Markham, Morobe Province, he reportedly said: ‘The aim is to build agriculture centres in rural districts and communities throughout the country so that NARI and the other organisations like the Coffee Industry Cooperation PNG, PNG Cocoa Board and others will also supply information to the centre farmers and growers.’ (The National)
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WestpacPNG new app. Credit: EMTV

Westpac PNG has released an app for Android and Apple devices. The app, which allows for two factor authentication, offers self-serve banking transactions, giving customers easy-access to their accounts. ‘The app is intuitive and offers the highest levels of convenience and security,’ said Westpac PNG Chief Executive, Brett Hooker. ‘We’ve based the design on Westpac Australia’s Westpac Live app, which won several awards when it was released for its simplicity and usability’. (EMTV)

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The construction of Harbourside South in Port Moresby, the second part of the Harbourside Precinct, will commence later this month, reports The National. It will be constructed on the site of the old Steamships Shipping office and is due for completion in 2022. The architects of the mixed use development are Cullen Feng, which are based in Australia and previously won the Papua New Guinea Institute of Architects award of Merit 2011 for Era Dorina Stage 4 Apartments.
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Photo of the week

Ulawun is on the island of New Britain in Papua New Guinea. Credit: himawari8bot

On June 26, Ulawun, a volcano on the island of New Britain in Papua New Guinea, unleashed an eruption that reached 13.5 kilometres high, according to the Darwin Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre. Eruptions have ceased but the ash plume drifting out over the Pacific managed to reach 19 kilometres, forcing airlines to cancel several flights in the region.

The blast also prompted the evacuation of thousands of people living within 30-60 kilometres of the volcano.

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