Petronas To Continue Reviewing High-Cost Assets

KUALA LUMPUR, March 1 (Bernama) -- Petronas will continue to review selected high-cost assets in its portfolio, especially considering the depressed oil price environment. President and Group Chief Executive Officer Wan Zulkiflee Wan Ariffin said external factors beyond its control have continued to push global oil prices down. "At the beginning of this year, with Brent crude oil price flitting below US$30 a barrel, we had to move to the next stage of more severe actions. "We have decided to re-phase the Petronas floating liquefied natural gas (LNG) 2 project and defer it by two years," he told a press conference after announcing the national oil and gas company's 2015 financial results here Monday. As far as the Pacific Northwest LNG project in Canada is concerned, Petronas has continued to work towards achieving full Final Investment Decision (FID), he said. He said the draft environmental assessment report, issued by the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency (CEAA) on Feb 10, is currently open for a 30-day public comment period, following which it will be finalised and submitted to the Minister of Environment and Climate Change for final approval. Meanwhile, Wan Zulkiflee said the Pengerang Integrated Complex in Malaysia's southern state of Johor was progressing as planned with the refinery and steam cracker construction on track for commissioning by 2019 while the whole complex was 20 per cent completed. Asked on a possible sale of assets and divestments, he said Petronas had been actively reviewing its assets, under all circumstances, as a way to remain competitive in the region. "We want to have a portfolio with high quality assets, and assets that do not meet the threshold will be candidates for divestment. "This will also depend on buyers' appetite. If you look at it, even at this time, there have not been that many merger and acquisition transactions," he added. (photoBERNAMA) -- BERNAMA