The Pacific Business Brief tracks the capital, trade and trends shaping the regional economy.
Photo: RNZ Pacific / Koroi Hawkins
In this edition:
- Pacific fuels prices continue to surge
- Solomon Islands tough stance on sale and export of gold
Diesel prices up big in June
June has offered no relief from rising energy costs in the Pacific.
On Thursday, the Samoan government, despite reporting more than 50 days worth of fuel in reserve, moved up to “amber alert”, which would ordinarily mean they had less than 30 days worth.
Accordingly, the Electric Power Corporation (EPC) will now start power shedding, and schools will be asked to revert to remote learning, the Observer reported.
The government said this was done as a precautionary measure, and that there is no impending fuel shortage.
Since April, capped diesel prices in Samoa have soared by 71 percent to five tala 31 sene per litre.
Meanwhile, Fiji have increased their diesel caps on main roads in Viti Levu and Vanua Levu by another 20 percent this month, to FJ$4.58 per litre. and $4.62 per litre respectively.
The Solomon Islands left their cap mostly unchanged, while a warning from Tonga’s central bank that their country could see double-digit inflation this year ties back directly to fuel prices.
And Nauru has increased their fuel price caps for the first time since the crisis began. Their maximum diesel retail price will increase by almost 40 percent to around AU$2.9 per litre, relative to February. Petrol at the pump will rise by around 20 percent, while the wholesale price for jet fuel rises by 64 percent.
Last week the Asian Development Bank (ADB) told RNZ Pacific that they were prepared to give hundreds of millions to Pacific countries, both in grants and loans for fuel-related budget support.
At the beginning of the month, Fiji secured a US$200 million loan from the ADB, which the country will receive within three to four months.
ADB’s Pacific lead Emma Veve told RNZ Pacific last week that help requests from Pacific Island governments have begun only recently.
“The Pacific has actually shown quite a lot of resilience to date. By and large, governments are dealing with it through management and redirection of their own resources,” she said.
“[But] no one’s clear about when the end is in sight.”
Further, it’s been nearly a month since the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) invoked the Biketawa Declaration, prompting island governments to collaborate on a regional response.
PIF secretary-general Baron Waqa, when asked by RNZ Pacific last fortnight, said that they have not yet discussed any kind of financial cooperation.. but it is the next item on the agenda.
A golden opportunity
The Solomon Islands government will ban the private sale and export of locally-sourced gold, Prime Minister Matthew Wale has announced.
Wale told a press conference this week that the gold trade would be monopolised by the state, claiming that a significant degree of revenue is lost annually through gold smuggling and under-the-table dealings.
“There has been so much theft from our country and resources from this… We are going to come down hard on it,” he said.
“Gold dealers licences in Honiara [have been] cancelled … we are also moving further down the line to have greater transparency and certainty on the price of minerals.”
The prime minister said a state-owned enterprise will become the sole buyer of gold, and the Solomon Islands Central Bank will become the sole exporter.
The Solomon Islands economy is estimated to have grown by 3.5 percent in 2025, driven by agriculture and gold production, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
In a recent review, the IMF said an expansion of gold mining could be massive for growth, so long as revenue actually stays in the country.
But in the absence of accurate data around gold exports, which could indicate gold smuggling if paired with volumes of alluvial gold mined in the country, the revenue loss remains unknown.
There is essentially one gold mine: Gold Ridge, owned by a Hong-Kong consortium Wanguo International. CEO Mingqing Gao met with Wale in his first week on the job.
A spokesperson for the mine said it contributed about 23 percent of Solomon Islands’ GDP in 2025, and paid more than SBD $510 million in taxes and royalties.
As for any policy changes, they said if it were in service of transparency, they were all for it.
“Gold Ridge Mining Limited welcomes government measures aimed at encouraging transparency concerning alluvial gold sales,” a statement read.
“We remain committed to working hand in hand with government and communities to make Gold Ridge a pillar of the Solomon Islands economy.”
