Applying national content best practices in Papua New Guinea

We are applying best practices and lessons learned across our projects and operations to develop an effective National Content Plan for improving the economic and social well-being of Papua New Guinea.

Workforce development
Similar to our Sakhalin, Russia, operations, our strategy is to increase the participation of Papua New Guinean employees over the life span of the project, and to provide the necessary technical and professional skills training for working on existing and future projects.

To facilitate implementation of this strategy, the project is building several training facilities. The Port Moresby Construction Training Facility, which officially opened in 2010, and the Juni Construction Training Facility will train up to 4000 students during the construction phase of the project. More than 400 trainees graduated from a temporary training facility in 2010, including 84 women. To prepare for project start-up, 76 individuals were recruited to attend the Production Operations Training Center in Port Moresby in 2010, including 20 women. A class of a similar size will be recruited in 2011. Successful graduates will be prepared to operate and maintain this world-class liquefied natural gas production facility.

Supplier development
The project supports the development of the local business economy through the purchase of goods and services in Papua New Guinea and by developing long-term supplier relationships. Through 2010, we had already exceeded our commitment to spend $450 million in Papua New Guinea, with local spending totaling more than $550 million. Local capacity is promoted by helping suppliers meet global standards, providing training for entrepreneurs, and creating business opportunities for local small and medium enterprises. In March 2010, the project opened a resource center to assist selected Papua New Guinean suppliers to strengthen their business processes and skills. We include requirements in our contracts with our multinational suppliers to prioritize the hiring of local firms, implement training, and execute a local business development program. Local suppliers must be financially sound, technically capable, and competitive in price and quality.

Strategic community investments
The project aims to improve living standards by investing in sustainable health, education, and agriculture projects. As part of our National Content Plan, we are committed to spending $20 million on strategic community investment projects during the construction phase and $5 million a year during the production phase. Through the ExxonMobil Malaria Initiative, the project collaborated with the Rotarians Against Malaria Program on logistics, planning, and bed-net distribution. Project sites were also added to the National Malaria Surveillance Program and plans are under development for enhanced malaria diagnostics at relevant community clinics. More than 1000 community members have been tested for malaria and were treated if positive. We are also working with Medicines for Malaria Venture to fund clinical trials of new anti-malarial drugs in Papua New Guinea.