“IT WAS finally proven that @NajibRazak was really great in managing the economy and not only that, he won the debate against @anwaribrahim in style (fell flat on his back)”.
Such was a post on X by اکو انق ملايو جاتي (@AKUANAKWATAN) which put into perspective the 90-minute debate on May 13, 2022 between disgraced eighth premier Datuk Seri Najib Razak and Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim who was then the opposition leader on whether to bail out cash-strapped Sapura Energy Bhd.
Declared another presumably staunch Bossku supporter ZULAB (@zulabmm): “After three years, the Najib vs Anwar debate over Sapura Energy has now found its winner. No need for a forensic audit, the government decided to bailout.”
Editor’s Note: Recall that during their debate, Najib had insisted that Sapura Energy be saved from bankruptcy with the possibility of getting national oil corporation PETRONAS to take a substantial stake in SEB.
On the contrary, Anwar stressed the need to get Sapura Energy’s house in order first by calling for a forensic audit on the oil and gas (O&G) services outfit. He also touched on Sapura Energy’s former CEO Tan Sri Shahril Shamsuddin’s remuneration.
Fast forward to present time, both observations could be a mild slap on PMX’s wrist after debt-laden Sapura Energy received a lifeline in the form of a RM1.1 bil investment from the Minister of Finance (Inc) through its special purpose vehicle Malaysia Development Holding Sdn Bhd (MDH) yesterday (March 11).
The funding is pivotal to settle what Sapura Energy owes its vendors. “As a Malaysian company supporting over 2,000 local vendors, we recognise our responsibility to preserve the Malaysian oil and gas (O&G) ecosystem,” acknowledged Sapura Energy’s group CEO Muhammad Zamri Jusoh.
“Our Malaysian vendors are predominantly small and medium enterprises (SMEs) who have endured significant financial hardship during and after the COVID-19 pandemic and it had always been our intention to fully settle overdue payables to them.”
Interestingly, MOF Inc and Sapura Energy must have thoroughly censored the damning “bailout” word from its Bursa Malaysia filing or even media statement with Sapura Energy seen to be entering “into a conditional funding agreement (CFA) with MDH to subscribe RM1.1 bil in nominal value of redeemable convertible loan stocks (RCLS).
But such cover-up is obvious to people familiar with the function of listed entities or the stock market.
“Not a bailout,” teased former two-term DAP lawmaker (Jelutong MP) Jeff Ooi. “(But just that) dulu lain, sekarang lain (literally, “it was different in the past, it is different now”).”
Not a bailout.
In a filing on Bursa Malaysia yesterday, Sapura Energy announced it has received an investment of RM1.1 billion from Malaysia Development Holding Sdn Bhd (MDH), a special purpose vehicle under the MoF Incorporated.https://t.co/tmoqTOaeHK
Dulu lain, sekarang… pic.twitter.com/ssJH9zKEao
— Jeff Ooi (@Jeff4Malaysia) March 12, 2025
Another market observer Datuk Jahat Hensem (@datukhensem) expressed fascination that “MOF is still cash-rich” while Tigerbhaiz (@tigerbhaiz) described the latest deal as “another public money bleeder”.
Netizen Afiq 𝕏 (@A_Hxrrxz) summed up the so-called ‘windfall’ for Sapura Energy best:
“While I’m scratching my head thinking about not having any money for Raya, Sapura Energy is so happy to receive RM1.1 bil in Raya bailout money. This is apparently the result of the forensic audit that was announced earlier.”
Aku tengah pecah kepala fikir nak raya takde duit ni, Sapura Energy sedap-sedap dapat duit raya bailout RM1.1 billion.
Ni rupanya hasil daripada audit forensik yang dicanang dulu tu. https://t.co/Shm6gwfdqS
— Afiq 𝕏 (@A_Hxrrxz) March 12, 2025
At 4.36pm, Sapura Energy – the most active stock on Bursa Malaysia today (March 12) – was up 1 sen or 28.57% to 4.5 sen with 180.37 million shares traded, thus valuing the company at RM827 mil. – March 12, 2025
Main image credit: EMIR Research
