We have the majors in our country. I ask everyone – for exploration, we will give the exploration incentives you need. For investment, we have been known to give incentives that investment companies need. And we remain the same in terms of working with investors and giving them the correct protective environment and ensuring that they invest, and secure their investment, as government always does. And I give you a commitment – my government, or any government in the future, will always be a welcoming place for investors in our country.

Although petroleum and mining exploration activity has fallen sharply in recent years with no current sign of an upturn, I am hopeful the conference will spark renewed interest in the resources sector because of the sterling performance of PNG-based operations, which will be showcased at this conference. The presentations by industry leaders on current petroleum and mining operations could provide confidence about future activities.

"We are hopeful that discussions sparked by this conference will lead to a renewal of interest in exploration and development activities in PNG in the coming years"