Kumul Petroleum Holdings Limited, Papua New Guinea’s national petroleum and energy company, announced recently that all necessary verification had been completed with the representative company of the PDL 2 landowners, enabling them to receive their portion of accrued Kroton Equity Option (KEO) preferential dividends.
Wapu Sonk, Managing Director of Kumul Petroleum said, “together with DPE we have completed verification of the directors and beneficiaries of the PDL 2 representative company, Kutubu Gas Holdings Limited.”
Mr. Sonk explained that under the 2009 PNG LNG Project Umbrella Benefit Sharing Agreement between the State, recognised provincial governments and landowners impacted by the project, certain beneficiaries were entitled to exercise a commercial option to acquire shares in the State entity holding shareholding in the project. Vendor finance for this was arranged by KPHL and known as the Kroton Equity Option.
“Today I am pleased to announce that Kumul Petroleum can award the PDL 2 landowner representative company, Kutubu Gas Holdings Limited, a cheque of K35.3 million for their preferential dividends accrued from 2017 to 2022, a significant sum.”
“I thank these landowners for their patience over the past 6 years.”
After consultation with their licence area communities, the PDL2 landowners established Kutubu Gas Holdings Limited, under the chairmanship of Sakai Kei, to receive their KEO dividends.
Mr Sonk added, “It is important that Kumul Petroleum follows due process in this exercise, including proper beneficiary identification, verified by the Department of Petroleum.”
“The PDL 2 landowner beneficiaries are the second landowner group to complete this process, after the PDL 7 landowners, who were paid their preferential dividends in August 2022.”
Other Kutubu Gas Holdings Limited directors present at the event included John Kapi Natto, Mark Sakai, Gibson Pole and Asi Ibusubu.
Mr Sonk took the opportunity to encourage other PNG LNG Project beneficiary groups to complete their eligibility criteria compliance so that they too could receive their KEO related benefits.
