By Nancy Nais
KUCHING, Nov 1: Sarawak companies will be given contract works worth not less than RM2.1 billion annually in the oil and gas sector within the State’s waters.
Second Minister of Natural Resource and Urban Development Datuk Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hasan said the Sarawak government and Petronas have agreed on the matter and it will gradually increase, depending on the volume of works and the capability of the local private sector.
Petronas will also increase the contract threshold for both upstream and downstream activities.
“The threshold value for upstream sector will be increase from RM10 million to RM50 million by 2030. As for downstream sector, the threshold value will increase from current RM5 million to RM20 million by 2030.
“At the same tine, Petronas SWEC (Standardised Work and Equipment Categories) code priority for Sarawakian contractors will also increase from the baseline of 63 categories to 600 by 2030,” Awang Tengah said at the signing of Sales and Purchase Agreement ceremony today between Bintulu Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) Terminal between Petronas Dagangan Bhd (PDP) and PUSAKA Integrated Resources Sdn Bhd.
Bintulu LPG Terminal is one of the two LPG terminals in Sarawak, with the other located in Kuching.
While Kuching LPG terminal caters to demand in southern region of Sarawak, Bintulu LPG terminal caters to LPG demand in central and southern region of Sarawak.
The Bintulu LPG terminal has been owned and operated by PDB over the last 20 years.
With the acquisition, Awang Tengah who is also Sarawak Deputy Premier said both LPG terminals in Sarawak are now owned and operated by local Sarawak companies which are subsidiaries of Sarawak Timber Industry Development Corporation (STIDC).
Applauding PDP for its continuous collaboration with Sarawakian companies in the oil and gas industry, he asserts that Sarawak has sizeable oil and gas reserves which have been exported mainly in the raw form.
He said Sarawak has a regulatory power as enshrined in the Oil Mining Ordinance 1958 and therefore, its government wants to be actively involved in the upstream and downstream activities in the oil and gas industry, and encourage wider participations of local private sectors in this industry.
Among those present at the event were PUSAKA Integrated Resources director Datu Hashim Bojet and PDP vice president and managing director Azrul Osman Rani. — DayakDaily
