Konebada Petroleum Park
The Konebada Petroleum Park Authority (KPPA) was established in 2008 by an Act of National Parliament. But it has seen little development since its creation as the overseer of a free trade zone connected to the PNG gas export sector.
In August 2015 the Petroleum and Energy Minister Nixon Duban announced the appointment of a board to oversee the development of the Konebada Petroleum Park (KPP).
However, the NRI in April 2017 released a report describing the KPPA as a ‘scam’ and called for its immediate abolishment. The report said the Lands and Physical Planning Minister – by putting over 23,000 hectares of land under the administration of the KPPA – failed in his ministerial responsibilities by not consulting the affected traditional villages and businesses within the area (Naime, 2017).
The NRI report authored by Logea Nao, Belden Endekra and Lucy Hamago raised three important issues: the mandate of the Konebada Petroleum Park Authority (KPPA); the impact of the rezoning of the land on the coastal villages of Roku, Kouderika, Porebada, Boera, Papa and Lealea and their communities; and the impact on businesses that have moved within the vicinity of the PNG LNG site.
The report’s authors warned that the KPP opened the door to land grabbing and made reference to Taurama valley and Manumanu, where traditional landowners have been forcefully removed and sidelined by both State and non-State actors.
