“PETRONAS does not belong to Putrajaya; it belongs to the rakyat.”
News that the national oil corporation is seeking potential buyers for the sale of its Canadian subsidiary – Progress Energy Resources Corp – has certainly not gone down well with some quarters.
On Tuesday (June 3), Bloomberg reported that PETRONAS is exploring options for a full or partial sale for the company.
However, PETRONAS has dismissed this report suggesting a potential exit from Canada by reiterating its commitment to long-term investments in the country’s energy sector.
“Any reports that claim PETRONAS is leaving Canada are inaccurate,” the global energy outfit with interests across the entire oil and gas (O&G) value chain in over 100 countries pointed out in a brief statement yesterday (June 4).
This denial though has not stopped the opposition from demanding answers.
PAS Information chief Fadhli Shaari had raised the issue in a Facebook post stating that any proposed sale needed a detailed explanation from the Prime Minister in Parliament.
Highlighting that the Canadian company had been bought for US$5.3 bil in 2012, a proposed sale for US$6 bil-IS$7 bil represented scant returns given the duration of the asset’s ownership.
The Pasir Mas MP also berated Putrajaya for the drop in PETRONAS’ nett earnings which he claimed saw a 30% dip last year.
Having cancelled the subsidy on liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and mulling a similar move on RON95 petrol, the PAS lawmaker argued that PETRONAS was not just a corporate entity with an eye on the bottom line but a corporation with national responsibilities.
The 44-year-old Fadli believes the scenario is bleak with falling global crude oil prices having contributed towards PETRONAS shedding jobs.
He demanded that there be a full report on the investment and returns on Progress Energy as well as a commitment by Putrajaya that PETRONAS will not sell its share in LNG Canada.
As it is, PETRONAS is a major equity partner in LNG Canada — the US$40 bil (RM169.7 bil) liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility nearing completion in Kitimat, British Columbia.
Above all else, the Perikatan Nasional (PN) MP is also seeking a moratorium on the sale of GLC (government-linked company)-owned assets abroad.
Following the exposure on his FB page, there were presumably many pro-opposition netizens who took Fadhli’s side on the matter with comments insinuating that the Madani administration was “impoverishing the nation”.
However, there were more than a few dissenting voices. One netizen made the sarcastic observation about the Islamist party’s own wastefulness by stating that if PAS were running PETRONAS, there would be decrees on buying luxury cars for its advisers/board members as well as paying them in US dollars.
Another commenter reasoned that no matter what the Madani government did with PETRONAS, it would be criticised by the opposition. It’s a no-win scenario.
While PETRONAS has issued a statement on the matter, it is commendable that the opposition sought clarification. Highlighting check-and-balance topics such as this is certainly preferable to playing up 3R (race, religion and royalty) issues.
Who knows if this may even lead to grown-up and civilised discourse online on pertinent issues of national interest.
As it is often said, ‘hope springs eternal’. – June 5, 2025
