4/22/2003 - Country Report Papua New Guinea via NewsEdge Corporation : Thecountry's first palm oil refinery and fractionation plant, built at a costof US$8m by New Britain Palm Oil, was commissioned in late March. It canprocess about 100,000 tonnes of crude palm oil annually or about 50% ofthe company's current crude palm oil production. It will produce refinedpalm oil, palm olein, palm stearin and fatty acid distillate for salemainly in Australia and New Zealand. The company expects to complete asmall packing operation by the middle of 2003 for the domestic market.Palm oil export volume fell to 306,000 tonnes in 2002, a 6% drop year onyear, primarily owing to unfavourable weather conditions in the palm oilproducing regions. However, in the fourth quarter of 2002 export volumewas up by 3% compared with the year-earlier period.

Source: Bank of Papua New Guinea, Quarterly Economic Bulletin.