Resource owners inthe Gulf province have raised grievances overthe announcement ofInterOil’s exclusive negotiations with Exxon Mobil onthe development of Elk and Antelope gas fields.
A good number of land owners have travelled tothe capital to seek audience withthe Prime Minister andthe Petroleum & Energy Minister.
The exclusive negotiation completesInterOil’s LNG Partnering process to developthe Elk and Antelope reserves inthe Petroleum Retention License are or PRL 15.InterOil has chosen Exxon Mobil to develop Elk & Antelope reserves. Its good news for the petroleum industry but this doesn’t go well withthe resource owners.
The resource owners have come out strong on a number of points. The first being to shut downthe second LNG site iftheir concerns aren’t taken seriously.
They allege a number of flaws yet to be addressed byInterOil. Such isthe need to conduct proper social mapping to identify legitimate landowner groups inthe project and impact areas. They say this will also addressthe issue of falsiflied land owners being involved in negotiation processes withthe developers.
They call onthe government to halt futher negotiations betweenInterOil and Exxon Mobil.
They are adamant thatthe government givesthem a chance to enforcetheir rights as resource owners and be included in future negotiations and dialogue with project developers.
Meanwhile,the joint venture partners –InterOil and Pacific LNG Group, last month indicated thatthey havethe option to ether independently develop a second gas project in Gulf or pursue futher development with Exxon Mobil.
However, that is now being questioned.
Over 20 landowner representatives are inthe capital, to seek audience withthe government. That figure is expected to increase inthe coming days.
