Malaysia's Petronas Expects Canada To Decide On Lng Project Within Next Two Months

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 23 (Bernama) -- Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas) expects the Canadian authorities to make a decision whether to build the liquefied natural gas project that it vied for within the next two months. President and Group Chief Executive Officer Wan Zulkiflee Wan Ariffin said Petronas, the Malaysian oil and gas company would only be able to make further plans after getting the last word from the relevant authorities. "We are still waiting for the final decision by the Canadian authorities and we would like to know the conditions, if any, for us to carry on with the project. "Once we have them, we will take a total review of the project and see what are the implications in terms of cost and schedule of the project, as well as revisit the market before making the final decision," he told a media briefing on Petronas' second quarter financial performance here Monday. Zulkiflee said Petronas would make the decision together with its four partners in the project, namely Brunei National Petroleum Co, China Petroleum & Chemical Corp, Indian Oil Corp, and Japan Petroleum Exploration Co. "It (the project) has been delayed so many times, but from what we had gathered, September and October will be the time frame (for the authorities to make the decision)," he said. The Malaysian national oil company and its partners have awaited approval from the Canadian authorities for three years to build the US$35 billion Pacific NorthWest LNG export terminal in northern British Columbia. Meanwhile, Zulkiflee said Petronas remained committed in paying the US$3.96 billion (RM16 billion, US$1 = RM4.03)) in dividends to the government this year. "Until June, we have paid RM6 billion, (and) we will be paying the (RM10 billion) balance between now and November this year," he said. Despite a slight recovery in the global oil prices in the second quarter compared with the previous quarter, Zulkiflee said Petronas would not revise its previous oil price target of US$30 per barrel this year. He said Petronas would continue to operate its business based on the target set. "People get excited because it (oil prices) went up higher than US$40 (per barrel) for a day or two but then it came down again. "Actually, our year-to-date average is only about US$40.70 per barrel compared with US$52 per barrel on average last year, and we are still below 2015 average," he said. The projected average price of US$30 per barrel for the year is fairly dynamic, considering the current global environment, he said, asserting that, "We are not changing our plan." As at today, the Brent crude oil price stood at US$49.92 per barrel compared with US$33.89 per barrel ‎on average in the first quarter of this year. --BERNAMA