The US supermajor, which is a major operator in the gas-rich nation, said the species, Elseya rhodini, is one of three related species found across the island of New Guinea.

It was discovered as part of the Piku project, a collaboration between the oil giant, the University of Canberra and the University of Papua New Guinea, which has been running since 2012 and was set up to study and protect the Piku species of turtle.