The Papua New Guinea Chamber of Mines and Petroleum is the peak industry body for the country’s resources sector.

It has a current membership of over 125 companies, roughly 30% of which are full members—that is, mining and petroleum companies active in PNG.

As the industry’s voice, the Chamber has been instrumental in working with the PNG Government to develop the proposed amendments to the Mining and Mine Safety Acts, and the institution of the new Mineral Resources Authority (MRA).

That the Government takes its relationship with the Chamber seriously is demonstrated by the presence of Executive Director Greg Anderson on the MRA’s founding board. ‘We have a strong and healthy industry, which is well-respected in the community,’ Anderson told Business Advantage. ‘The exploration sector is particularly strong.’

Anderson sees the completion of the World Bank-funded Mining Sector Institutional Strengthening Project as being key to the sector’s development. This project, run by Australian company Terra Search, aims to digitise all exploration data into a single database, which can then be made available to exploration companies. According to Anderson, the project is ‘65% complete’ and even in its incomplete state has ‘driven the exploration business’ in PNG.

The Chamber also coordinates the mining industry’s presence at events such as the annual Prospectors and Developers Association Convention (PDAC) in Canada, as well as publishing the highly informative magazine Profile, an industry digest published to coincide with the biennial PNG Mining and Petroleum Investment Conference.

Weblink: www.pngchamberminpet.com.pg