Landowners’ ID exercise to start

Petroleum Minister Dr Fabian Pok on Friday announced that the landowner beneficiaries’ identification (Lobid) exercise for 2019 will begin in Hides area of Hela to identify beneficiaries for PDL 1 and PDL 7 in the PNG LNG project site.
The Lobid exercise, which was formerly known as clan-vetting, is an important prerequisite for a ministerial determination under section 169A of the Oil and Gas Act.
Pok said: “The main objective of the Lobid exercise is to conduct a review with the potential beneficiaries in Hides and across the PNG LNG project footprint, on all the information on project area landowners that have been collected, collated and finalised.
“This needs to be done so that ministerial determination is fulfilled, before any release of legislated cash benefits.
“The main outcome from this Lobid exercise will be the formal determination of PNG LNG project area landowners (Palos) to be formally accepted as beneficiaries and be legitimately recognised as recipients of direct cash benefits – royalty and equity (dividends).
“As Minister for Petroleum, and on behalf of the Government, I announce the Lobid exercise for this year, to begin in Hides so that this important prerequisite, being ministerial determination under s.169A of the Oil and Gas Act, can be completed to pave the way for eventual payments of cash benefits that are promulgated in the Oil and Gas Act without any further delay.”
The Government, through the then Department of Petroleum and Energy (now Department of Petroleum), since 2013 began the exercise to ensure correct project beneficiaries were identified.
“Most of this work has been completed, however, it was stalled due to various reasons and challenges posed by various stakeholders,” Pok said.