Onshore pipeline segments

IT is good to note that MRDC officials had been involved along the onshore pipeline segments and the various Petroleum Development License areas from Kikori all the way to Hides gas project area, establishing various beneficiary landowner clan bank accounts, for the disbursement of equity and royalty benefits from the PNG LNG project.
While the process had been long overdue, it is welcome news, especially for those beneficiary landowner clans within the 15m pipeline right of way, the various PDLs areas and hopefully also within the 5km pipeline buffer zone, as gazetted per the ministerial determination.
Most of these beneficiary landowner clans have waited patiently since the royalties were first paid to the government after the first LNG shipment in April 2014 by the developer EMPNG.
And of course, as we all know too well, the unfortunate delays in payments had been caused by the muddling up of the beneficiary landowner clan identification process by both the developer and the government.
It is stressed here that the PNG LNG Project is a 30 years plus project and of course the benefits to accrue to the landowner beneficiaries would be very huge indeed, now and during the life time of the project.
It is therefore critical that these benefits are safe guarded and prudently managed by those entrusted to be agents or representatives on behalf of the beneficiary landowner clans.
It is a well-known fact, that even before the PNG LNG Project got off the ground, the so-called clan leaders or representatives, started to procure services, on credit basis, away in Mt Hagen and Port Moresby, without the knowledge or approval of the beneficiary landowner clan members.
Such practices had often resulted in the landowner clan members disrupting or closing down the project operations due to the complaining not been paid their money.
MRDC or whomever is the responsible government institutions out there should by now look into establishing a corruption or misuse prone free landowner equity and royalty distribution mechanism or structure.
This structure should ensure that there are transparent, prudent management and stringent guidelines over how the benefits are to be used that will be beneficial for the beneficiary landowner clans now and during the life time of the project.
We should be cognizant of the so-called “big man mentality” that has dearly affected so many of the landowner benefits that had been paid, (during construction phases) through blatant misuse and extravagant expenditures without
the knowledge or approval of the beneficiary landowner clan members.
Most of the beneficiary landowner clan members out there are illiterate and this had been a cause for concern, as the “big man” had often capitalise on this, resulting in them misapplying the landowner’s benefits for their own greed and sole benefit.
Even the ongoing MRDC exercise on establishing the landowner beneficiary clan accounts could be or definitely will be misused by those entrusted to be agents or representatives.
MRDC officials should therefore do more than just opening bank accounts by undertaking due diligence awareness amongst the landowners covering such illegal practices.
Such practices are already evident on the ground where agents or representatives in collusion with bank officials had withdrawn landowner monies without the knowledge or approval of the landowner beneficiary clan members.
There will be instances where the nominated signatories to the landowner beneficiary clan accounts, will be absent for long periods of time thus impacting on the smooth disbursement of benefits whenever it became due to be paid.
And what do you end up with? Of course dissatisfied landowners stopping or disrupting project operations as leverage for their benefits payments! And mind you such disappointments had been amongst the reasons for continued tribal or clan fighting in the project areas!

Lorenitz Gaius
Ketskets villa