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Sarawak signs refinery MoU with Chinese firms
PROJECTS & COMPANIES
MALAYSIA’S Sarawak State has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with two Chinese rms over a proposed integrated re ning project.
The US$5 billion downstream complex, which is being led by state-run Sinopec Engi- neering and Beijing Beca Sci-Tech, will be located in the state’s northern division of Lawas and will produce petrochemicals for the export market. Sinopec vice-president Zhao Xiangdong and Sarawak Industrial and Entrepreneur Devel- opment Ministry Permanent Secretary Datuk Liaw Soon Eng signed the agreement on June 10.
e plant, which will target industrial buyers in China and Southeast Asia, is slated to begin operations in 2022.
Witnessing the agreement, Sarawak Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg said the project would help to boost development in the state’s north.
He said: “This will be a game changer for northern Sarawak, particularly Lawas and Lim- bang. About 1,000 jobs will be created in the rst phase, while the peak construction period will create about 20,000 jobs.”
Abang Johari added that Lawas had been chosen because of its strategic location,
availability of land and environmental sta- bility. He added that his government would support the project’s development by provid- ing supporting facilities such as a port at the project’s site in Pulau Sari.
e minister said the MoU was a step towards expanding the Sarawak’s capacity in the oil and gas sector. Not only is the state looking to directly exploit its oil and gas resources but it also wants to reduce exports of raw goods in favour of val- ue-added products.
Abang Johari said: “We want to participate in the exploration and extraction of oil and gas in Sarawak and engage in upstream and down- stream activities, primarily to enable Sarawak to have a new revenue stream. We welcome the active participation of the private sector in the development of the state’s oil and gas sector.”
e agreement is a part of wider drive by the state government to attract investors by promot- ing business-friendly policies. Abang Johari said an increase in public spending within the next two years in physical and digital infrastructure would help Sarawak’s GDP expand.
“Sarawak’s economy needs to grow by at least 6% annually in order to be able to attain the sta- tus of a developed economy by 2030,” he said.™
PTT sells first LNG cargo
PROJECTS & COMPANIES
SINGAPORE-BASED PTT International Trad- ing has sold its rst LNG cargo, a company exec- utive told Reuters last week.
e company, the trading unit of ailand’s state-owned major PTT, acquired the cargo from an undisclosed supplier. While the source said the cargo was to be delivered to an Indian buyer this month, they did not reveal any other details of the deal.
While PTT began importing LNG in 2011, this is the group’s rst sale. e energy major set up its Singaporean trading desk in February and
is in the process of optimising its LNG-related assets. PTT has long-term supply contracts with QatarGas, BP, Royal Dutch Shell and Malaysia’s Petronas for the import of slightly more than 5 million tonnes per year of LNG.
ailand relies heavily on natural gas in its primary energy mix and the country is upping its imports of LNG. PTT has earmarked around US$4 billion for domestic gas pipeline and LNG terminal projects during 2019-23.
PTT has an 11.5 million tonne per year import terminal at Rayong and is understood
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w w w . N E W S B A S E . c o m Week 23 23•June 13•2019