3 Major Projects Vital To Strengthen Position: Petronas CEO

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 13 (Bernama) -- Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas) says its investments in Canada and Pengerang, Johor (southern state of Peninsular Malaysia) as well as in a Floating Liquefied Natural Gas (FLNG) project will help strengthen its position as a fully-integrated multinational oil and gas (O&G). In an exclusive interview with the New Straits Times (NST), Petronas President and Group Chief Executive Officer Wan Zulkiflee Wan Ariffin said the national oil giant’s three ambitious projects have been sanctioned as a long-term investment to strengthen Petronas’ long-term position. Stressing that the US$36 billion Canadian LNG project is viable, he said the huge investment is a right and long-term investment for the company given that it is now the world’s third biggest LNG player (US$1=RM4.19). "Today there is only one condition remaining, which is the environmental approval. "As soon as we obtain the approvals, the joint venture will proceed with the project. We are hoping to start by first quarter of 2016," he said in the interview, the first he has given to the press since assuming the number one position in April. Wan Zulkiflee also came to the defence of another ambitious Petronas project, the RM60 billion Refinery and Petrochemical Integrated Development (RAPID) project in Pengerang, Johor. RAPID will be the biggest integrated petroleum complex in Asia as the refinery will have a capacity of 300,000 barrels per day, he said. "It will be processing imported crude oil. The petroleum products will be for the domestic market. Petchem products will be for export. "We are a net importer of petroleum products. With RAPID, we are able to delay the imports," he explained. Wan Zulkiflee said he foresees the construction peak for RAPID in 2017 when about 55,000 people are expected to be working onsite. "There will be challenges but I think we are putting in resources to make sure we mitigate all the risks involved and hopefully by 2019, we can have the refinery up first," he said. The company's two FLNG facilities, costing US$4.5 billion, are now under construction in South Korea. "This is the right project for Petronas. There are noises but in the long run, we’ve got big resources, we are a big LNG player, we have secured the market," added Wan Zulkiflee. -- BERNAMA