PM: KPHL set for restructure

KUMUL Petroleum Holdings Ltd (KPHL) will be restructured to focus on the country’s upstream investments in the oil and gas sector, Prime Minister James Marape says.
Marape said the downstream part of the business in the sector that the state through KPHL recognised would be left to Mineral Resources Development Company (MRDC) and landowner companies.
“Kumul (Petroleum Holdings Ltd) will migrate to the upstream businesses for and on-behalf of the State,” he said.
“MRDC and all the landowner companies will migrate into the downstream business so that landowners are given, through the landowner companies, greater participation in spin-offs that come out.”
Marape added that another subsidiary might be created under KPHL to participate in the downstream activities as well.
“We might create another subsidiary vehicle to also run this partnering our landowner companies,” he said.
“As much as possible, in the future landowners would participate through structures that MRDC hold, or at the structures they may hold through spin-offs at the lowest
level.”
Marape said KPHL would be representing the State and partner with operators and their partners in major petroleum projects in the country.
“Kumul (KPHL) will go into the area of equity holdings in big projects.”
Meanwhile, Marape also mentioned that KPHL was now under the Ministry of Planning and Monitoring.
According to KPHL, the entity is PNG’s national oil and gas company.
Through Kumul Petroleum Authorisation Act 2015, KPHL was mandated to protect and maximise the value of the country’s petroleum assets so it could contribute to the maximum wealth for the people of PNG.
KPHL is currently responsible for managing the State’s 16.57 per cent equity in the US$19 billion (K64.63bil) PNG LNG project.
KPHL is the legislated State nominee and can always exercise its option for a 20.5 per cent stake in every project petroleum project.