By Ashley Sim
KUCHING, June 22: Sarawak’s oil and gas, services, and equipment (OGSE) companies have been urged to explore adjacent industries in order to secure their long-term sustainability in tandem with the energy transition, which is seeing oil and gas majors shift to renewable energy and cleaner fossil fuels.
According to Deputy Minister for Energy and Environmental Sustainability Dr Hazland Abang Hipni, the OGSE industry needs to progress in a more sustainable manner.
“The current trend is to phase out fossil fuels as we are now going through a transition of energy where hydrogen is the energy of the future.
“Hence, Sarawak is focusing and committing a lot of effort towards greener sources of energy such as hydro, solar and hydrogen; in other words, leveraging on the State’s natural resources of over 300 rivers as well as regular rainfall, abundant sunshine, and natural gas,” he said today during his speech before officiating the two-day Sarawak OGSE Roadshow 2022 jointly organised by the Sarawak Economic Planning Unit (EPU) and Malaysia Petroleum Resources Corporation (MPRC) at Borneo Convention Centre Kuching (BCCK) here.
Meanwhile, MPRC president and chief executive officer (CEO) Mohd Yazid Jaafar highlighted that sustainability within the OGSE industry was among focus areas of the National OGSE Industry Blueprint (OGSE Blueprint) 2021-2030, which was launched in April 2021.
“In tandem with the energy transition and a growing urgency globally to address climate change, OGSE players must balance financial survivability with long-term sustainability.
“Under the OGSE Blueprint, from this year to 2024 OGSE players will be guided towards institutionalising sustainability practices,” said Mohd Yazid.
He said the OGSE Blueprint contained initiatives designed to support and lead OGSE companies towards entering adjacent industries such as renewable energy, which the OGSE companies could readily enter due to their existing competencies in oil and gas.
“These existing competencies, in turn, are immediately transferable to the adjacent industries,” he added.
In the meantime, according to MPRC’s press release, over 300 delegates attended the first day of the roadshow, which is being held as part of a series of OGSE Roadshows conducted around Malaysia to promote the OGSE Blueprint and its initiatives available to benefit OGSE companies.
“The OGSE Blueprint contains 31 initiatives, of which 21 initiatives have been operationalised since the launch of the OGSE Blueprint in April 2021.
“The second day of the Sarawak OGSE Roadshow 2022 will continue on June 23, 2022, with closing remarks and closing keynote address to be delivered by Sarawak Premier Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg and the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Economy) Dato Sri Mustapa Mohamed respectively,” the press release stated. — DayakDaily
