Summary
Santos will donate US$200,000 to aid agencies in PNG to help get urgently-needed food, water and medical supplies to more than 30,000 people isolated in small villages in the PNG Southern Highlands and Hela Provinces following last Monday’s earthquake.
Santos will donate US$200,000 to aid agencies in PNG to help get urgently-needed food, water and medical supplies to more than 30,000 people isolated in small villages in the PNG Southern Highlands and Hela Provinces following last Monday’s earthquake.
Santos Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Mr Kevin Gallagher said, “Santos is deeply saddened by the loss of life and personal injury suffered by communities in Papua New Guinea as a result of the recent earthquake.”
“This crisis is far from over for people in PNG with significant damage to homes, crops, water supplies, telecommunications and other infrastructure.”
“Access to and from these isolated communities is extremely challenging.”
“Santos is working with our PNG LNG partners, ExxonMobil and Oil Search, on a coordinated humanitarian relief and recovery plan in consultation with our community partners, aid agencies, the PNG and Australian governments.”
Mr Gallagher said, “PNG LNG expertise and resources have already been deployed to assess communities and deliver immediate resource needs.”
Santos recently committed US$1M in funding for accident and emergency health services at the Hela Provincial Hospital in Tari.
Santos has been operating in PNG alongside our community partners since the 1980s and has exploration and production interests in the Western, Hela, Southern Highlands and Gulf Provinces.
The company is a foundation partner in PNG LNG and is a direct participant in the Hides gas field.
The PNG gas facilities and operations in which Santos is a participant have been impacted by the earthquake and production is currently shut in.
All personnel are safe and accounted for and ExxonMobil and Oil Search, as the operators of the various joint ventures, continue to evaluate the situation and plan for production resumption.
At this time our top priority is to assist our community partners in PNG.
