When whispers emerged from Port Moresby that the Marape government was on the verge of offering up to US$3 billion in concessions to foreign energy partners in ongoing Papua LNG negotiations, it was former Prime Minister and PNC leader Peter O'Neill who sounded the alarm — clearly, publicly, and without hesitation.
In a statement that reverberated through PNG's political and business community, O'Neill reminded the nation of a simple but powerful truth: Papua New Guinea holds the cards at this table. As a stable, peaceful, non-conflict environment in a world increasingly disrupted by geopolitical instability, PNG is not a country that needs to beg for investment — it is a country that deserves to negotiate from strength.
"Papua New Guinea is in a position of strength. We should not be pressured into making costly compromises. The original 2019 agreement had already secured key benefits for this country, including equity participation and increased LNG production capacity."
— Hon. Peter O'Neill, MP for Ialibu-Pangia & PNC Leader
O'Neill's intervention carries the weight of lived experience. As Prime Minister, he oversaw the most consequential resource agreements in PNG's modern history. He understands — better than most — the long arc of these negotiations, and the irreversible damage that a rushed, concession-heavy deal can inflict on a nation's development trajectory for decades to come.
The PNC's position is unambiguous: the people of Papua New Guinea must receive their full, rightful share of the nation's natural wealth. Not the scraps left over after foreign multinationals have extracted their margins. Not a consolation prize dressed up in diplomatic language. The full share. The PNC will continue to hold any government — past, present, or future — to that standard.