Kumul Petroleum Holdings Limited has been granted 100 per cent control of three Petroleum Retention Licenses (PRL) by the PNG government (KPHL).
PRL 48, 49, and 50 of the Kimu, Barikewa, and Uramu gas fields have already been discovered.
The three fields have the best estimation of contingent capacity (2C) of slightly more than 2 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of crude, with 50–60 million barrels condensate.
Kerenga Kua, the Minister for Petroleum, delivered the licenses to Wapu Sonk, the Managing Director of KPHL, today.
PRL 48, 49, and 50 refer to the Kimu, Barikewa, and Uramu gas fields, which KPHL plans to expand.
Kimu and Barikewa are both onshore fields, while Uramu is located offshore in Gulf Province's Kikori waters.
Minister Kua described the event as historic since KPHL was given sole ownership of the licenses after the previous licensee's contract expired.
“This is an important step forward as we realise the potential of our world-class natural resources. It shows that our policies are working and allows the Government through the guidance of the Department of Petroleum to allocate assets and licenses to the right developers and in particular looking for a greater share of the benefits from our resources when the licenses expire and the rights return to the State.”
After the original authorization for the fields expired, KPHL thanked the government for granting them the license.
He said that KPHL has the financial and technological resources to grow the fields.
“I thank the Petroleum Advisory Board (PAB) and Minister for coming to this decision, which demonstrates their confidence in the country’s National Oil and Gas Company, which is ready now to lead in the development of our resources after last Ten Years of being a passive investor in PNGLNG Project and other developments.
“At Kumul Petroleum, we take seriously our responsibility to move forward quickly so the assets can begin generating returns for the nation. We are looking forward to getting them started but will only do so on good commercial terms, which deliver substantial benefits to Papua New Guinea and its people.
“Our focus now is on developing commercial strategies for the PRLs, so we can work towards bringing them to market.
“This is another milestone for our company and the country, as we continue to work to develop our excellent resources and support the world’s transition away from coal. Papua New Guinea has some of the world’s best natural gas assets, which KPHL is committed to developing with local people and businesses, the Government and global partners.”
Wapu Sonk says KPHL will find cost-effective ways to commercialise the fields.
“We will explore cheaper and more cost-effective ways to commercialise these fields not only in Production of LNG and coal, as well as downstream refining, power generation, quicklime and cement production, and so on.
He added, “At Kumul Petroleum, we take seriously our responsibility to move forward quickly so the assets can begin generating returns for the nation. We are looking forward to getting them started but will only do so on good commercial terms, which deliver substantial benefits to Papua New Guinea and its people.
“Our focus now is on developing commercial strategies for the PRLs, so we can work towards bringing them to market.
“This is another milestone for our company and the country, as we continue to work to develop our excellent resources and support the world’s transition away from coal. Papua New Guinea has some of the world’s best natural gas assets, which KPHL is committed to developing with local people and businesses, the Government and global partners.”
A PRL is valid for five years, with the option to extend for another five years.
