Bid to review gas deal dismissed

By BEVERLY PETER
AN application by the North Fly MP James Donald to review the P’nyang gas agreement between the Petroleum Department, State and ExxonMobil has been dismissed for failing to comply with court orders.
Deputy Chief Justice Ambeng Kandakasi presiding at the National Court in Waigani on Monday said the court’s specific order had been for Donald’s lawyer to appear and they failed to comply.
“The applicant has to come to the court and show cause why the case was filed in order to proceed and they failed to do that,” he said.
“It is by law that the application be dismissed if the applicant consecutively fails to comply with court orders to appear on the date and time set.”
This follows solicitor general Tauvasa Tanuvasa’s oral application to dismiss the proceedings on behalf of the State when there was no appearance by Donald’s lawyer Ralph Saulep.
There was no appearance by Saulep when the case was mentioned for hearing on Monday.
The proceeding was filed on April 5 and on July 19, Deputy Chief justice Kandakasi set Monday for a hearing of the leave application and made orders for the parties to come prepared.
A specific order made was to dismiss the proceeding if Donald through Saulep continued to fail to turn up and if not ready to proceed with the hearing.
Tanuvasa said since the applicant had failed to appear to make their case, the court needed to dismiss it.
“It seems that they don’t have interest in the matter anymore by not showing up,” he said.
Donald through Saulep was seeking Court’s permission to review Petroleum Minister Kerenga Kua’s decision to enter into a heads of agreement signed on Sept 28, 2021; P’nyang Oil and Gas (LNG Project) Amendment Bill (2021); National Gazette No.118 dated Feb 22 pertaining to P’nyang Oil and Gas Amendment bill (2021); and, the glass agreement between the Petroleum Department, State and ESSO (PNG) P’nyang limited (ExxonMobil) in Port Moresby on Feb 22.
Donald said in the application that the amended Oil and Gas Act (2020) under which Esso (PNG) P’nyang limited (ExxonMobil) Ltd was permitted and licenced was not a law because it had not been certified and gazetted until and after the signing of the P’nyang gas agreement.
He also sought to declare that the Oil and Gas (P’nyang LNG Project) Amended Act (2021) did not comply with the requirements of section 38 and 39 of Constitution on general qualifications on qualified rights.
The additional orders sought were for the court to order Petroleum Department, State and ESSO (PNG) P’nyang Ltd to consult the landowner’s associations of P’nyang gas project in North Fly and the provincial government in relation to any development on the project.
Donald said there was no such consultation before the signing of the agreement of gas project on Feb 22. He said the landowners were the direct beneficiaries of the project and should have been included according to the law.