EITI pleased with oil and gas leaders

THE PNG Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative has welcomed the frank discussions by leaders in the oil and gas sector on the volume of petroleum reserves in the country.
Head of EITI national secretariat Lucas Alkan (pictured) was commenting on a statement by Oil Search managing director Peter Botten about the untapped oil reserves of seven billion barrels.
Botten said so far, only 40 per cent of the oil and gas resources had been tapped into.
Kumul Petroleum Holdings Ltd managing director Wapu Sonk said extractive companies operating in the country had so far discovered close to 30TCF (trillion cubic feet) of gas.
He said there was more to be found, especially offshore which has huge potential and yet to be tested.
Alkan said: “Such disclosure by leaders in oil and gas companies goes to show that they are investing with the true spirit of transparency and accountability.
“This is what Extractive Industries Transparency Initiativeis all about.
“The National Secretariat is of the view that extractive companies are willing to commit to the EITI reporting process and we highly appreciate this.
“This is one of the ways in which we can attract competiveness in the petroleum market.
“The end result is a well-coordinated approach to do business in the petroleum sector.
“We welcome the disclosure of such information and we hope to see more cooperation and support from the industry as we strive to promote PNG Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative concept in the country.”