{
  "id": 11803075,
  "title": "Jaminan Abang Jo mengenai Petros ‘tak mencerminkan realiti’, dakwa Zaid",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/03/jaminan-abang-jo-mengenai-petros-tak-mencerminkan-realiti-dakwa-zaid-11803075",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-10-03T23:33:57.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Free Malaysia Today",
    "slug": "free-malaysia-today-freemalays",
    "url": "https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/bahasa/tempatan/2026/10/04/jaminan-abang-jo-mengenai-petros-tak-mencerminkan-realiti-dakwa-zaid"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Former Sarawak Law Minister Zaid Ibrahim challenged Premier of Sarawak, Abang Johari Openg, over his assurance that Petros, the Sarawak state-owned oil and gas company, would not take over or weaken Petronas's position in the country's oil and gas industry. Zaid said that assurance was not in line with reality, pointing to Petros' efforts to take over Petronas' role as gas aggregator in Sarawak. \"Petros wants to take over Petronas' role as gas aggregator. It's not a small change or just an additional role. It means taking over a significant portion of Petronas' business,\" he said on Facebook. On Saturday, Abang Johari said Petros' growing role in the Sarawak gas sector was not aimed at replacing Petronas. He said Sarawak remained committed to working with Petronas while simultaneously increasing its own capacity to process the state's resources, including plans to build a liquefied natural gas (LNG) regasification terminal in Kuching by 2029. He said Petros had been discussing with Norwegian energy infrastructure company Höegh Evi for over a year and both companies have announced a joint development agreement to develop, own, and control the terminal. However, Zaid said the level of cooperation could not be judged solely on assurances, but also on the impact of the changes being made. He said Petronas could lose billions of ringgit if it no longer controlled its role as gas aggregator in Sarawak, with the state's gas industry estimated to be worth around RM10 billion annually. \"Petronas has already been affected by some Sarawak actions. In a controversy involving Shell, RM80 million monthly payments were withheld due to confusion over who should receive the payment,\" he said. Zaid said the issue was not just about commercial matters as Sarawak also questioned whether the Petroleum Advancement Act 1974 (PDA) and other petroleum laws were applicable in the state. \"It means the foundation of the legal basis for establishing Petronas itself is being challenged,\" he said. He warned that if each oil-producing state were allowed to claim equal control over petroleum resources and a significant portion of the supply chain, it could shrink Petronas' scale and its ability to meet national interests. \"If every oil-producing state does the same, Petronas will lose the scale that has historically made it strong. Its national stature could be weakened and ultimately falter,\" he said. Zaid said any solution needed to clearly acknowledge Petronas' rights to Malaysia's oil and gas resources as stipulated under the PDA. \"That cannot be compromised. Only after that can discussions be made about the appropriate role Petros should play, taking into account Sarawak's needs and circumstances. However, it cannot start with Petros taking over Petronas' functions when Petronas' legal rights are still being contested,\" he said.",
  "summary": "Bekas menteri undang-undang berkata usaha Petros mengambil alih peranan Petronas dalam sektor gas boleh melemahkan syarikat minyak negara itu.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Free Malaysia Today",
        "title": "Abang Jo’s assurance on Petros ‘does not match reality’, says Zaid",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/03/abang-jos-assurance-on-petros-does-not-match-reality-says-zaid",
        "published": "2026-10-03T23:30:22.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}