Managing Director defends MRDC's Investment decisions

Press Release

Mineral Resources Development Company is a successful landowner-fund manager with investment decisions made by boards of subsidiary landowner companies, says managing director Augustine Mano.

He said neither the MRDC management nor Prime Minister Peter O’Neill had made any investment decisions. Mano said the MRDC investment process followed a stringent process.

The management, he said, took investment proposals and recommendations to an independent investment committee that vetted them and made appropriate recommendations to landowner subsidiary boards that made the decision.

“So the Hevilift, Pearl Resort and PNG Air investments went through this process except for the CMSS Casino investment,” Mano said.
“In fact, the investment (in the CMSS casino) was made against the management’s advice.
“However, as a responsible manager, MRDC is doing everything thing legally possible to recover that investment.”

Mano said all investments by the MRDC Group were done with a long-term view.
He said contrary to rumours, Hevilift was the flagship investment for MRDC.

“Over the past 10 years since investment, the revenue has tripled and 40 per cent of that revenue is from outside PNG,” Mano said.
“At the time of the investment, there were no overseas operations.

“Net assets have tripled and the operating fleet of helicopters and aeroplanes have increased from 26 to 50, with 40 of those aircraft owned by Hevilift.

“The Hevilift operations have expanded to Myanmar, Indonesia, and Malaysia and recently to mining charter contracts in Australia. It’s clients include Total, ExxonMobil, Petronas, BHP Billiton to name a few.