Mining
From The Report: Papua New Guinea 2017
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Commodity price fluctuations have rendered sporadic development across Papua New Guinea’s mining sector in recent years. Nevertheless, a diverse basket of minerals continues to attract international investors, who remain eager to unearth the nation’s resources, which have fuelled economic expansion. However, a lack of hard infrastructure and challenging natural conditions continue to escalate operating costs, which hampers revenue streams across the industry. Despite infrastructure drawbacks, mining continues to play a crucial role in the economy, contributing more than 34% of export revenues, according to figures from the Mineral Resources Authority. The sector registered impressive production numbers throughout 2016, following a weaker performance in 2015, which was characterised by a depressed commodities market and a temporary closure of one major mine.

This chapter contains an interview Peter Graham, Managing Director and CEO, Ok Tedi Mining and Chairman, Kumul Minerals Holdings.

Articles from this Chapter

Overview

Dig in: Unearthed potential is encouraging exploration projects
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Commodity price fluctuations have rendered sporadic development across Papua New Guinea’s mining segment in recent years. Nevertheless, a diverse basket of minerals continues to attract international investors, who remain eager to unearth the nation’s resources, which have fuelled economic expansion. However, a lack of hard infrastructure and challenging natural conditions continue to escalate operating costs, which hampers revenue streams across the industry. Despite infrastructure…

Analysis

Planning ahead: Legal amendments can help the sector continue to grow
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The Mining Act of 1992 has served as a sturdy legal guide for the industry in Papua New Guinea, albeit with a small number of gaps that policymakers are eager to close. With the ultimate goal of maintaining a legal structure that is attractive for investors while also providing adequate financial incentives for the state and protecting the benefits of landowners, a number of conflicts of interest have arisen in the revision of the law, delaying the passing of some legislation. While a complete…

Interview

From the ground up: Peter Graham, Managing Director and CEO, Ok Tedi Mining; and Chairman, Kumul Minerals Holdings, on the impact of changing commodity prices
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Interview: Peter Graham With copper and gold so important to the mining industry, how do you see global commodity prices impacting the sector in the coming year? PETER GRAHAM: Gold and copper are the principal metals mined in Papua New Guinea. For copper, the price bears a relationship to supply and demand. Demand in China, which is the dominant user of copper in the world, has a significant impact on price. Gold price is more difficult to forecast and geopolitical issues typically play an important…