KUCHING, July 2: Malaysia’s oil giant Petronas in a statement today insisted that it has exclusive rights to all petroleum resources in Malaysia, including in Sarawak.
The statement issued by Petronas’ Media Engagement, Group Strategic Communications said the oil company maintained it has exclusive ownership of the petroleum resources in Malaysia and is the sole regulator of the upstream sector in the country, indicating that Petronas is likely to continue to pursue legal avenues to assert its rights over state oil and gas resources.
The statement was in reply to a statement from the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) that the state government would begin to exercise its powers under the state laws relating to oil and gas activities in the state from July 1, including the Gas Distribution Ordinance 2016 which had come into force on that date.
“As for state laws which are already in force like the Oil Mining Ordinance 1958 and the Land Code 1958, the relevant state authorities will also begin the process of ensuring compliance with these laws including gathering the necessary information from all industry players, as well as a more detailed and comprehensive engagement with them.
“The state accepts that this process will take time and that is why the industry players would be permitted to conduct their business and operations as usual up to the end of 2019 while at the same time taking the necessary steps to ensure compliance with the state laws,” said the CMO in the statement yesterday. — DayakDaily
