Papua New Guinea's parliament could resume the process of drafting legislation that will set the tone for the privatization of Air Niugini (PX, Port Moresby).

In an interview with Australia's ABC, the airline's chairman, Frederick Reiher, said the government would retain at least 50% ownership of the carrier with the other 50% open to investors, including those from abroad. This, however, will require an Act of Parliament the legislation for which was drafted during the previous 9th PNG Parliament but which was not debated owing to elections which took place in June/July of this year.

"I believe now that even with a new Minister for Public Enterprise and State Investments [William Duma], the government will still give us priority," he said. "It might happen sooner rather than later."

As part of the preliminary steps in privatizing the airline, Reiher said KPMG had been enlisted to carry out a full evaluation.

"We got KPMG to do an evaluation of the company, that's been done, and cabinet has accepted it," he said.

Air Niugini operates a diverse fleet of one B737-700, two B737-800s, two B767-300(ER)s (leased from Icelandair), three Dash 8-300s, three Dash 8-200s, one Q300, seven Fokker 100s, and nine Fokker 70s on flights to thirty-seven destinations across Papua New Guinea as well as Australia, Indonesia, Hong Kong, the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, Fiji, the Philippines, Micronesia, Singapore, and Japan.