Welcome to the Second AAPG/EAGE Papua New Guinea Petroleum Conference and Exhibition:
“Petroleum Developments: Underpinning Papua New Guinea’s Energy Future”

On behalf of the Organising Committee, I am delighted to invite you to join us from 21^st to 23^rd February 2023 at the Hilton Hotel in Port Moresby for the Second AAPG/EAGE Papua New Guinea Petroleum Conference and Exhibition. 

Following the successful prior event held in February 2020 just before the Covid pandemic gripped our world, we wish to once again assess and discuss our knowledge of Papua New Guinea’s oil and gas endowment and how we are successfully finding and producing oil and gas accumulations and contributing to the National and local economy.

The conference is a technical event for which we seek the best quality papers and presentations that will help document our science, engineering and other expertise in oil and gas development in what is an exciting frontier area of the world.

Papua New Guinea has been home to exploration for over a hundred years, but it was only in 1986 that commercial oil accumulations were discovered that gave rise to the Kutubu OiI Development Project, which commenced oil production some thirty years ago in June 1992. Since our early oil discoveries, significant gas fields were also found some of which have been included in the ExxonMobil operated PNG LNG Project which commenced gas production and LNG export in May 2014. Our total daily production now amounts to around 250,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day of which about 95% is associated with the PNG LNG Project. LNG exports from the PNG LNG Project amount to approximately 8.9 million tonnes per annum. 

Plans are being prepared for the next LNG development which will produce gas and condensate from the Elk-Antelope gas field in the Papua LNG Project to be operated by TotalEnergies. This project will construct two new LNG trains providing for further LNG export of 5.4 million tonnes per annum. Beyond that the P’nyang gas field will be developed to provide additional gas feedstock and continued LNG export through the facilities of the PNG LNG Project. The oil and gas industry outlook is for continued gas production and LNG export for several decades or more to come.  

The conference will examine the petroleum geoscience and petroleum engineering that supports these endeavours providing scientific and technical account of exploration, development and production in the challenging environment of Papua New Guinea. In this instance, we will broaden that account to include talks and discussions on not only commercial and fiscal issues, but also the somewhat unique issues of access to customary owned lands. We will also take stock of the Government sharing of benefits with impacted communities and how the companies take care of the welfare of the people of those areas.

Our theme: “Petroleum Developments: Underpinning Papua New Guinea’s Energy Future” reflects our diverse topics for talks and discussion and our planned sessions are as follows:

Petroleum Geology:

Petroleum Development:

Petroleum and Subsurface Technology

Petroleum Rewards

Spread over three days, the conference will also be introducing and including some panel sessions between the technical sessions where prominent industry leaders will be invited discuss select and topical issues.

We also plan to hold some workshops and training courses before and after the event on 20^th and 24^th February 2023. Exhibition space will be available for industry participants and others to exhibit their goods and services. 

As usual a unique and spectacular welcoming Papua New Guinea-styled icebreaker party will be included along with a conference dinner.  Other events will include a student meet-and-greet with students from the University of Papua New Guinea.

We do hope you will be able to attend and visit Papua New Guinea - a young and vibrant democracy in a non-aligned nation where freedom is axiomatic to society and where customary living excitingly meets modern living, all set in a beautiful tropical environment of mountains, rivers and deltas.

See you in February 2023 in Port Moresby!

Michael McWalter, OL, CS, Chairman and Convenor, Second PNG Petroleum Conference

Past President, Asia Pacific Region

Delegate-at-Large, Asia Pacific, House of Delegates

Councillor, Advisory Council

Councillor, Division of Professional Affairs Council

Member, Sustainability Committee

American Association of Petroleum Geologists