Social Studies 10 Name:

Should MNCS be allowed to continue to operate in PNG?

PNG Enquiry Preparation…

What specifically should I prepare for the enquiry?

My role is Development Officer for PNG LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas) employing 9000 Papua New
Guineans. Largest investment project in the country’s history. Could double PNG’s GDP and create huge
export revenues. It produces 7.9 million tonnes of liquefied natural gas (LNG) each year which is exported to
the Asia region. The Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) pipeline in the Southern Highlands runs through rugged
terrain, earthquake region, areas of heavy rain and land occupied by tribes often in conflict with each other.
The company states that it aims to protect biodiversity and indigenous communities, and to provide royalties to
the landowners affected.

1. Have an “opening statement” prepared, which should be short - 1-2 minutes

In the statement you should

● Introduce yourself
● Tell why you are here - why is this an important discussion, from your point of view?
● I recommend having an important fact, quote, anecdote, or something that illustrates
your issue
● I recommend you address the other people at the inquiry in some way - Not everyone of
course, but you may have something to say to the government representatives present,
or the mining companies or to the indigenous people, etc.

Put your opening statement here:

Good afternoon esteemed representatives of your distinct communities and organisations. I am the
development officer for PNG LNG and I am here to share my ideas and suggestions for the future .
We have gathered here today to discuss some disputes between Papua New Guinea’s
environmentalists,fundamentalists and the MultiNational Corporations which some of you claim to do
harm to your beloved nation. We as an organisation believe that the spread of MNC’s into Papua
New Guinea has benefited the people of this nation drastically and we also believe that we are
bracing this country for a brighter future. Throughout our project so far, we have provided over 51,000
jobs to people since 2009. We have provided education, medical facilities and infrastructure which
connect the highlands to Port Moresby. However, there are still people such as the administrator of
PNG LNG watch that believe we do harm to this nation. PNG LNG believes that international
cooperation with MNC’s is the way to connect Papua New Guinea to the rest of the world, and ensure
further cooperation with nations and companies in order to improve the socio-economic situation of
this country . We and other MNCs such as AUSTRADE have put in a huge amount of money and
effort in order to try and make this international scheme happen. Due to this we ask from all of you,
whether you are for or against us, a fair hearing where you do not only take into consideration the
minimalistic localised problems, but the international solutions that we provide for this nation and
others.

2. Have some questions prepared to ask various people. Keep a list here
 Try to ask questions that CAN be answered.

For example, “What do you have to say about the problem of _______________?” “What justification
do you have for your continued _________________?”

You can refer to specifics, of course, but try to avoid questions such as, “Tell me what year this
incident occurred?” Or, “Can you tell me exactly how many people were impacted by _____________”

Specific questions I will ask and to whom…(10 minimum). Remember, you can (and should) ask
“tough” questions where appropriate but you could also ask more positive or constructively critical
questions. Your tone should depend on to whom you are asking.
1. To PNG LNG watch. Your job is to make sure we obey the national and international law along
with our own expectations. Having said that, can you tell us what we have done wrong
according to the law?
2. To WWF. We understand that you are an environmentalist but i have just one question, do you
prioritise human or animal life more? Because if you prioritise the human lives more then you
should pay attention to the good that we have done in this nation.
3. To Austrade. Could you please describe to us the ways in which you promote investments into
this nation and also how much money you have guided into this country?
4. To Ex-police officer. Could you just tell us about the changes that you have seen in this nation
since we came here and since you started working for us.
5. To anybody that says tourism could work for the PNG economy. Would you recommend
tourism as an alternative economic income to MNCs? (follow up) if so, how do you promote
ecotourism as a sustainable development strategy with its potential negative impacts on local
ecosystems and cultures in Papua New Guinea?
6. To WWF ( or anybody against MNCs)Don't you think that some environmental campaigns in
Papua New Guinea overlook the importance of economic development for local communities,
potentially hindering poverty alleviation efforts? ( Follow up) If not, then what do you think
minimising us MNCs will do? At the end of the day we provide most facilities, education and
infrastructure here.
7. Can you provide examples of instances where environmentalists in Papua New Guinea have
successfully engaged in constructive dialogue with industries like logging and mining to find
mutually beneficial solutions that prioritise conservation and sustainable development?
( Follow up) We have managed to engage in constructive dialogue with other companies but
not with you so who is the real problem?
8. How do you ensure that environmental education and awareness-raising efforts in Papua New
Guinea are accessible to all segments of society, including marginalised groups and remote
communities? (Follow up) Because these people should have their own voice on the matter
and not the voice of some foreigner.
9. To WWF or watch. Do you think that imposing western conservation models is correct in
PNG? If not then what do you reccomend? If yes then don’t you think that this approach could
alter the local communities and undermine your efforts.
10. To survival international worker. Taking into account the laws and legislations, what do you
think we could do to minimise our effect on local tribes?

3. Think about questions people will be asking YOU. How will you respond? You can use the
information from table III above.
Do you plan to reduce your carbon footprint?
We plan to reduce it as much as we can given the technology available at the time and also the
circumstances of our plant. But as fossil fuels produce C02, we can't just make carbon emissions
disappear. We promise that we will do what we can to reduce our C02 footprint.
How do you plan to reduce chemical waste?
We already have many WWTP ( wastewater treatment plants) and desalination plants to minimise
chemical pollution. Due to government restrictions we cannot build many more big facilities since they
would produce other unwanted waste.
Why do you not compensate the affected communities?
We do our best to compensate but in a country with no electronic web and constant debate about turf
and land. It is very hard to determine who to compensate for and also how much. Not only that but it
is also quite hard to access their areas and deliver them resources and money. We do our best given
what we have.
What do you plan to do about your deforestation?
We do not cut down very many trees anymore. Most of our deforestation was done during the
building of pipelines and projects. The only way we will continue is if we get a permit from the
government to expand our plans.
Do you disagree that you affect many marine ecosystems?
We acknowledge our effects but we also know how limited they are. There are no marine protected
areas within 500 km of our runoff area. Also, the chemicals that reach the sea are close to none so
even the ecosystems there are barely affected.
Don’t you think that it is wrong to give advantages to tribal warfare?
This in general is a tricky topic. We cannot do anything except what the government has advised us
to. Therefore, we must compensate whomever we affect. What they do with that compensation is no
longer our concern. We also cannot instigate or fund a conflict since that is not our purpose.
Do you deny causing the landslide in the tumbi quarry?
We believe that the mining at the quarry was not related to the landslide. There are many landslides
in Papua New Guinea due to its high seismic activity and its heavy rainfall. An investigation
afterwards agree that we had nothing to do with it.

4. Think about possible solutions. What might you propose to the group or individuals if you had the
opportunity? Any specific ideas to help promote the economy in a sustainable manner?

We believe that Papua New Guinea is a fragile country that can only be handled through a fair and
cooperative relationship. That is why we beleive that MNCs and environmentalists can work together
rather than against each other. Currently, environmentalists just tell us what we do wrong but they do
not help. We believe that we can meet somewhere in the middle of both our needs to ensure that we
all get what we want. So we say that we should work with them, if they are willing to listen. We can
ensure a brighter future for this nation by educating the people and letting them make their own
choices. Therefore, we suggest a long term plan in which education is provided about the local
environment to allow the people to decide what they should do with their nation.We also suggest
cooperation in order to allow different sustainable forms of income to enter this country. Together, we
can make Papua New Guinea a global example to lead by, but apart, we will just make life worse for
everyone. We need to change the environmental and multinational relationship to an open one rather
than an argumentative one.
Remember that I will collect all of your notes at the end. Keep everything!

I.
General notes - factual information, quotes, statistics, etc. that help me understand the situation. Try to be as NEUTRAL
as possible. At this point, it doesn’t matter who is right or wrong about anything. JUST THE FACTS!

General Notes
factual information, quotes, statistic, etc. Source (just the name and/or url of the source)

PNG actively provides 9000 jobs across all of PNG, https://www.pnglng.com/

some in the highlands close to Laite and it spans all
the way down to the area of Port-Moresby. There are
also plans for even more jobs since there are
expansion plans both north and south.

Multiple desalination and WWTP to ensure that the https://www.pnglng.com/

water is as close to clean as can be. Regular
checking of the water samples is taken in order to
ensure maximum efficiency and also things
functioning well.

Constant products and research from PNG LNG in https://www.pnglng.com/

order to help improve their waste treatment.

LNG PNG has been in PNG since 2014 and they had https://www.mechademy.com/lng_plant/png-lng/
originally stated a “30-year-plan” to extract some of #:~:text=The%20PNG%20LNG%20plant%20has,will
their things %20add%20another%2040%25%20capacity.

86% of PNG LNG is worked by PNG people. Some https://www.pnglng.com/

of them have been provided with free education in
order to work there.

Infrastructure such as schools, medical centres, png-lng-invests-education

roads and airports have been built in the highlands.
This allows easier access for touristic companies to
access the beautiful highlands.

The Institute of Banking and Business https://www.pnglng.com/

Management Enterprise Centre, located in Port
Moresby, was established by the PNG LNG
Project in 2010 to create economic opportunities
for Papua New Guinean businesses and
develop the capabilities of local landowner
companies and contractors

II.

A. My point of view about MNC’s in PNG is:

MNC’s should be seen as an opportunity for PNG to integrate itself with the modern world. MNC’s are an
opportunity for them to increase jobs, decrease gang and criminal violence and also provide education and
facilities for many people in all parts of PNG. Most importantly, it should create a relationship with them and
the modern world. By trade, tourism and recognition, MNC’s can bring PNG to a higher local development
level and it could boost them in their long term economy and global awareness leading to more business and
tourism for them. Not only that, but it could also connect them with other people,companies and nations that
would lead to an interconnected relationship and further opportunities for this nation.

B. Notes of information that I will use to try to state my concerns, defend myself, demonstrate why I have the
position that I do, show why I am opposed to someone’s position at the enquiry, etc.

Notes of information to support my point of view in the table below:

factual information, quotes, statistic, Why did I choose this bit of Source (just the name and/or url
etc. information? Why important? of the source)

Exporting 7.9 million tonnes of
LNG to Asia. There are also
potential plans to build a pipeline
that connects with australia.This
would mean that PNG is
connecting itself more and more
with the modern world.
This piece of information shows just https://www.pnglng.com/
how much PNG LNG is exporting
and how it is aiding people in
multiple nations. It is important
because it is also implying that the
awareness of PNG is increasing to
other countries which could lead to
other partnerships and negotiations.

20% of jobs are women and 86%
of total people working for us are
from PNG. W
This is showing the effect of our https://pg.linkedin.com/jobs/lng-
MNC. We have provided a certain jobs?
level of education to many Papua countryRedirected=1&original_ref
New Guineans in order for them to erer=https%3A%2F
be able to work for us. This also %2Fwww.google.com
shows how we aid the community %2F&position=1&pageNum=0
since we are paying them as well.
We also hire and train women to do
jobs which does not usually happen
in PNG. All of this is important since
it shows our community work.

27.3% of PNG's 2022 GDP
This is showing how relevant our
project is to PNG. During a time of
covid in which tourism was tricky for
them. We made up more than ¼ of
their economy. Therefore drastically
helping them and their people.
https://islandsbusiness.com/news-
break/png-lng-2024/#:~:text=The
%20ANZ%20bank%20says
%20the,27.3%25%20of
%20PNG's%202022%20GDP.

600kg is enough for 1 household
per annum. Meaning that we
provide energy for thousands of
households and possibly millions
of people,
In the area of southeast asia (where https://www.pnglng.com/
we mostly export) The average
household uses up 600 kg of natural
gas per year and we produce
7,900,000 tonnes. (7900000000
kilos). That means we provide
energy to 13.6 million households in
the pacific region annually. This
shows how important our plant is on
a national and international scale for
this general region.

London produces 36,000,000 London's population is close to 9 https://www.theguardian.com/

tonnes of c02 annually. Relative million. We provide energy to many environment/2024/feb/27/london-
to the 31,000,000 that we more. This shows that yes we do is-city-most-exposed-to-air-
 produce annually. release lots of C02 but we do less pollution-from-aviation-global-
than a COLD metropolitan city that study-finds
requires more energy with less
people. ( The point of this is to put
the number into relativity for people
to understand the stakes.

Tari in highlands hotel and lodge
and jobs.
There are many lodges in the https://www.steppestravel.com/
highlands and one of their main accommodation/ambua-lodge/
access points is the Komo air strip
that we funded and built. Lots of the
roads used by the lodges are
because of us. This shows our
importance towards other sections
of PNG’s economy.

An estimated 20% of power This fact is important since it shows https://www.offshore-

demand of Port Moresby is
supplied from the plant, in addition
to gas to be supplied to the new 58
MW power plant under
construction, which will add
another 40% capacity
our relevance to Port Moresby as technology.com/data-insights/oil-
well. Not only do we provide jobs gas-field-profile-png-lng-project-
there but we also provide 20% of conventional-gas-field-papua-
the power there and we are building new-guinea/
a plant that will add 40% more
capacity. Therefore having 60% of
the total energy is Port Moresby
being provided by us.

Redscar High School and Lealea These are 2 schools that we built https://www.pnglng.com/
Primary Schools outside Port Moresby. It is important
since it shows our contribution and
our community work towards all
ages in the local area.
III.

A. My main opponents are:

My main opponents are people that are trying to take care of the environment and also people that are
trying to preserve local culture. These people refuse to change whether it impacts the world on an
international scale or just them. They will come up with countless arguments about tribes and the
environment. E.g administrator of PNG LNG watch, a WWF expert on biodiversity.,Indigenous Chief
from Collingwood Bay,Oceans Campaigner for Greenpeace etc

B. My main opponents’ points of view about MNC’s in PNG are:

They believe that MNCs are disturbing the equilibrium that has been on this land for so long. They believe that
we bring nothing good to this land and they also believe that we should go and allow this gold mine to just be
an indigenous area. They want to continue living in isolation in order to preserve culture and biodiversity and
according to them. MNCs are making both of those vanish. They do not want to develop their nation out of fear
of harm for biodiversity.

Notes of information people might use “against” me

factual information, quotes, statistic, What would I say in response to this? Source (just the name and/or url of
etc. the source)

The combustion and production 1. Relative to some other https://www.theguardian.com/

of our energy pollutes 31,000,000 places such as london. Our environment/2024/feb/27/london-
tonnes of C02 into the waste is not that bad is-city-most-exposed-to-air-
atmosphere. considering how many pollution-from-aviation-global-
people we help. study-finds

We influence tribal disputes by
giving compensation money and
supplies to some tribes and not
others.
We negatively influence the food
chain by releasing unwanted
chemicals into the environment
such as nitrogen and phosphorus
and chlorine.
We cut down many hectares of
trees in the process of building
our pipelines and factories.
We effect some communities by
spewing chemicals and mud into
the rivers
The runoff affects coral reefs in
the sea in this part of the island.
2. LNG is the cleanest form of
combustible fuels and many
nations in this part of the
world do not have the money
nor the technology to switch
to green energy.
1. Our government agreement https://www.abc.net.au/news/
and our personal policies 2016-12-15/png-deploys-military-
both state that we only to-protect-gas-project-stop-tribal-
compensate the tribes fighting/8125578
affected.
2. These tribes have been at
war for many years and we
are only obliged to give
compensation to the tribe we
effect
3. Why would we scale up a
conflict more by giving both
parties money. We
understand that it gives one
an advantage but it is not
our role to deal with conflict
1. Considering the rugged https://www.pnglng.com/
terrain and limited access to
the highlands, we have
implemented the most
modern and efficient WWTP
and desalination plants in
order to minimise our effects
2. We are doing everything
inside the confines of the
PNG law and our personal
regulations
1. In such a green country, in https://www.m-gc.com/wp-
order to access these content/themes/mgc/pdfs/Papua-
remote areas. You must cut New-Guinea.pdf
down trees. We have
minimised how many trees
we cut down and we also do
not cut them unnecessarily.
Only areas in which
construction must happen
are affected.
1. Once again we are not https://www.m-gc.com/wp-
breaking any national or content/themes/mgc/pdfs/Papua-
international laws. New-Guinea.pdf
2. The area which we do
pollute is the area with the
least population density in all
the island. 4 people per
square kilometre.
1. The area that the Kikori river
goes into does not contain
any coral reefs. In fact the
closest protected area is the
great barrier reef which is far
 out of range of our
chemicals.

Our pipelines affect marine life as
well since it goes underwater.
1. The building of our pipelines https://reclaimfinance.org/site/
did affect the ecosystems a en/2023/11/29/the-art-of-
bit but they are below muddying-the-water-our-
ground both on land and in response-to-totalenergies-on-the-
the sea. papua-lng-project/
2. Our pipelines are some of
the safest in the world
meaning that they currently
do not affect them and they
were slightly affected in the
building of it.

IV. Alliances - who do you think will be “with” you? Don’t just take the most obvious ones. Who else on the
list of participants might be an “ally in disguise” or someone you think you might be able to get to see your
point of view, at least.
Potential ally Notes

The CEO of the Ok Tedi Mining Limited (OTML).
This is a state-owned gold, copper and silver mining
company. Your company has offices in PNG and in
Brisbane, Australia.
Ok Tedi is now fully owned by the PNG government
so it is a good way to compare how we are doing
compared to them. Also it is another company that
mines PNG for its natural resources so we could help
and defend each other. If I get very desperate, I
could throw them under the bus and I could start
talking about how much worse they are compared to
us.

A Yonggom PNG worker in the Ok Tedi Mine.
Lives in Tabubil. Whilst you sometimes miss your
previous life in the forest, you welcome the regular
employment, electricity supply and improved wage
levels etc
I could ask him questions about life before and after
MNCs in order to be able to back up my point that
they are necessary for the evolution of this nation.
He could also be used to defend the position of the
OK TEDI mine and from there I could once again say
how we cause less harm than them to the
environment.

A fund manager for Vanguard Mutual, an
investment management company. In
Luxembourg, individuals, pension funds and other
institutions invest in Vanguard’s funds, expecting a
solid return on their money. Vanguard itself has
about 370 funds, some of which invest in several of
the companies operating in PNG.
He could be used to argue the concept of PNG
integrating with the world. People as far as
Luxembourg are trying to invest in this country so
imagine the potential that they have. They could be
used to prove my point and they are also for MNCs
since that is how they make their money.

An ex-police officer, now a worker in the Caution
Bay PNG LNG Plant 20 km from Port Moresby. You
welcome employment and more generous salary.
Before you were a policeman in Port Moresby but
feared for your life on a daily basis from the Raskol
gangs. The Police are often accused of corruption,
violence and brutality. You welcome the investment
that PNG LNG provides.
This person now works for my company. I could use
him to emphasise our aid on the community and also
our goals and how we have achieved them. He could
also be used to tell the rest of the people if we are
doing well or not in the capital. EG if jobs reduce the
crime rate.

Representative for Austrade, the Australian We both argue that PNG needs to open its arms and
 government agency which assists Australian
companies to build and implement their export
strategies. As a regional power, Australia has a keen
interest in economic affairs in PNG. The CEO will be
sending a Pacific region representative to the
conference.
V. Opponents - No doubt there will be people who have an opposing viewpoint to you, there is no getting
around this. So...be prepared for them by identifying who they are and what they might be thinking. The
information from Table III above should help you with this.
Potential opponents
A WWF (World Wide Fund for Nature) expert on
biodiversity. Concerned about the impact of
logging, mining, palm oil plantations, seabed mining,
pollution, climate change, on the rainforest and
marine ecosystems.
Oceans Campaigner for Greenpeace, a marine
biologist by training, completely opposed to the
Nautilus projects.
Indigenous Chief from Collingwood Bay
concerned about the attempts to develop their land
by KLK. KLK has been accused of human rights
abuses towards its employees elsewhere, and of
contributing to huge deforestation in Indonesia and
other areas. You have joined forces with other chiefs
to oppose KLK.
A Survival International worker. Survival
International campaigns for the protection of
indigenous people around the world. They are
particularly active in the Western Half of the island, in
the area administered by Indonesia, but are
concerned about threats in PNG as well.
Administrator of PNG LNG Watch, a non-
governmental organisation set up to monitor
PNG LNG’s activities. The Liquefied Natural Gas
(LNG) Pipeline in the Southern Highlands runs
through rugged terrain, earthquake region, areas of
heavy rain and land occupied by tribes often in
conflict with each other. PNG LNG states that they
will be protecting biodiversity and indigenous
communities, and aim to provide royalties to the
landowners affected. PNG LNG Watch is critical of
various policies of PNG LNG, including the methods
and accuracy of ‘clan-vetting’ used to identify
landowners to get royalties from PNG ING. PNG
LNG has been accused by some of contributing to a
landslide in 2012 that killed at least 25 people.
embrace integration with others. There are also
potentially future plans with PNG LNG and them. I
should use them as an example of MNCs trying to do
good in PNG since they are and they are from the
country that used to tule PNG which gives them a
better say than me in this argument.
Notes
They will definitely start arguing about all the
chemicals, deforestation and effects on multiple
ecosystems that we have but they will fail to take into
consideration human life. This could be used against
them. They will also side with the administrator of
PNG LNG watch.
They could also start arguing about our pipeline and
its current and past effects however I would consider
it unlikely and not a major threat anyways.
Once again, this person is not directly opposed to me
but they might end up asking some questions about
me and my activities since I do affect their problems.
However there shouldn't be any major threats from
them.
These people will probably ask us questions about
our influence on the local tribal conflicts however
there will probably not be too much on us and it will
mostly be focused on Ok Tedi and the chinese.
This person is going to be my main opponent since
their entire job is to put me down. However, I suspect
that they will drift too far off into the environmental
problems even though their job is to “ make sure that
PNG LNG is living up to all the laws and legislations
provided to them by Papua New guinea, PNG LNG
and international law.”
1997 company act.- states that if a company does something outside of its land or legislation.It cannot be held
accountable.

Releifweb.int- “The report contained no reference to the PNG LNG Project, concluding,
"The Tumbi Landslide was caused by continuous heavy rainfall which weakened, or
undermined, the existing topography and the limestone formation."