Energy and transition economics
2026-04-26
14 min
12 sources
Papua New Guinea LNG and the Pacific Island Pivot, 2026
Two FIDs (Papua LNG taken September 2024, PNG LNG Train 3 expected 2026 to 2027) and a contested Pacific security architecture rewrite the Coral Sea, Solomon, and Polynesian risk map for global energy and defense capital.
Papua New Guinea is on the cusp of doubling LNG output. The TotalEnergies led Papua LNG project (Elk Antelope, 5.4 mtpa, capex around USD 13 billion) reached FID in September 2024 with Santos, Kumul Petroleum, and JX Nippon. The ExxonMobil led PNG LNG Train 3, slipped many times since 2014, is targeting FID in 2026 or 2027 with P'nyang ga...