ExxonMobil has taken over as operator of Papua LNG, putting the company behind PNG’s existing LNG export operation in charge of advancing the country’s proposed second major gas export project. ExxonMobil PNG Antelope Limited assumed operatorship on 16 October 2026 under an agreement reached with co-venturers TotalEnergies, Santos and ENEOS Xplora in September.
The transfer ends TotalEnergies’ tenure as operator, which began in March 2015. ExxonMobil’s affiliate will now lead project work with the other partners, the PNG Government, Gulf and Central provincial governments and communities in the project area. ExxonMobil PNG managing director Tera Shandro’s counterpart on the project, ExxonMobil PNG Antelope chairman Dinesh Sivasamboo, acknowledged TotalEnergies’ work in advancing the development and said ExxonMobil would work with stakeholders towards an investment decision.
Investment decision remains ahead
Papua LNG is based on the Elk and Antelope gas and condensate fields in Gulf Province. The proposed development links gas production and transport with liquefaction for export. The PNG Government has identified 15 December 2026 as the deadline for a final investment decision under the revised project arrangements. That decision will determine whether the development moves into construction, when demand for contractors, logistics providers and local suppliers would start to take shape.
A proposed transfer of participating interests is also before PNG’s Independent Consumer and Competition Commission. The commission issued a public notice on 4 November covering proposed acquisitions by ExxonMobil, Santos and ENEOS Xplora from TotalEnergies. That process concerns ownership interests in the joint venture, while the October handover changed who runs the project.
Prime Minister James Marape welcomed the handover and linked Papua LNG to plans for further gas development, including P’nyang. The government sees Papua LNG as the first in a sequence of developments that could sustain investment and employment over several years. For businesses looking to supply the project, the immediate milestones are the final investment decision and the pace at which the operator can then turn project preparations into construction work.
