BINTULU: Sarawak’s enduring appeal as a hub for oil and gas investments continues to shine brightly.
Premier Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg expressed his delight that, even after more than a century, the oil and gas industry in Sarawak continues to thrive.
“We remain an attractive destination for investors like Shell,” he said during his speech at the earthbreaking ceremony of the Rosmari-Marjoram Onshore Gas Plant in Tanjung Kidurong here yesterday.
Abang Johari has high hopes that the forthcoming opening of the Shell Malaysia Upstream Headquarters at Miri Times Square will stand as another testament to the strong confidence and relationship between Shell and the state government.
“However, Sarawak’s political stability and sound economic policies cannot be discounted as the plus factor for investors like Shell coming to Sarawak to grow their business,”he added.
He also emphasised that Sarawak stands to benefit when Shell turns a profit, as the State Sales Tax (SST) comes into play.
“If Shell makes money, Sarawak also profits due to our SST. To put this into perspective, since 2019, Sarawak has collected RM13bil through SST, a significant increase from the mere 5 per cent royalty that we used to receive for our oil and gas,” he said.
He expressed gratitude towards Petronas and Shell for contributing to the SST, which has enabled important infrastructure projects, such as the construction of the Kemena Bridge here.
Abang Johari remains optimistic about the vast gas reserves that lie beneath Sarawak’s continental shelf, despite early 1990s predictions that Sarawak’s gas reserves would only last another 20 years.
“Over 30 years later, we continue to discover more oil and gas fields offshore Sarawak, with the latest additions being the six fields in five blocks – SK306, SK411, SK313, SK301B, and SK315.
“I hope to see more ‘SK’ discoveries in the future,” he said.
Also in attendance were Minister for Food Industry, Commodity and Regional Development, Datuk Seri Dr Stephen Rundi Utom; Minister for Transport, Datuk Seri Lee Kim Shin; and other dignitaries.
