28 Sep 2010

PNG villagers attack ExxonMobil gas site

4:30 pm on 28 September 2010

Residents of a village in Papua New Guinea have reportedly gone on the rampage, attacking an ExxonMobil gas site in Gulf province.

The National newspaper says high-powered weapons were used in the surprise attack, in which a dump truck and a service truck were burned and other equipment was destroyed.

The attack on the LNG contractors Clough Niugini and Queensland company Curtain Brothers was carried out last Friday near Kaiam Ferry in Kikori on the south-east coast.

The cause of the unrest is unclear, but the National reports it was part of ongoing disagreements between various landowner groups in LNG sites across the country.

The project is hoped to double PNG's gross domestic product, with at least 30 years of gas sales to Asian buyers once it comes online after 2014.