Joint venture agreement of MISC and Petromin

Petromin was created to hold the State's oil, gas and mineral assets and is entrusted to maximise indigenous ownership and revenue gains in the mineral and petroleum sectors of Papua New Guinea. MISC was selected by Petromin as its JV partner after going through a competitive bidding process where one other international LNG shipping company also participated.

The purpose of the agreement is to incorporate a joint venture company to provide LNG transportation solutions for LNG projects in Papua New Guinea and to secure shipping contracts to support other general shipping requirements in the country. The joint venture company, Western Pacific Shipping Limited, which is to be incorporated in Bermuda Islands, will be 60% owned by MISC, with Petromin PNG Shipping Limited holding the remaining 40%.

The joint venture is to enhance the growth prospects of both companies in the LNG industry, especially in the Asia Pacific region. With the development of two and possibly three LNG projects, the Papua New Guinea LNG industry is estimated to grow to 14.6 million tonnes per annum by 2015. Furthermore, the joint venture will also enable the structuring of LNG training programmes for local sea-going professionals in line with Papua New Guinea's National Agenda to initiate and grow its nation's maritime industry.