Marape responds to Polye’s disastrous plans for PNG’s economy

Following Don Polye making a promise to sell PNG’s stake in Oil Search Limited, PNG Finance Minister  James Marape MP has hit back at Polye’s short term thinking.

“Don Polye has again shown that he does not understand the value of PNG’s investment in Oil Search. There are very good strategic reasons for PNG to ensure we are involved in Oil Search’s future.”

“We need to maintain our national interest presence in such an important PNG grown petroleum company, a company that is a top twenty listed trading company on the Australian Stock Exchange. Our presence is the only thing stopping IPIC and Arab states buying off minority shares in what should be PNG owned projects and businesses.”

“If these Arab states, who are probably the most experienced oil and gas traders in the world, so desperately want to be involved with Oil Search and the future of petroleum production in PNG, who is Don to think he knows better?”

“The O’Neill government had to maintain a national ownership policy that ensured we had a stake in petroleum production in Papua New Guinea. Because of IPIC’s reluctance to release their shares we had to buy our presence to ensure we are a stakeholder in Oil Search in the long term.

“This allows the PNG government to pass wealth onto our people and stop it going offshore to benefit people that aren’t even Papua New Guineans.”

“It is not for short term money interest but long term national interest that our Government makes decisions like this.”