State-owned oil and gas company Petros first in Sarawak to receive licence to manage carbon capture
KUCHING, March 15 — The state-owned Petroleum Sarawak Berhad (Petros) was today issued the first licence in Sarawak as a resource manager for the state’s natural carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) resources.
The licence, issued by Sarawak Land and Survey Department, covers an area located in the North Luconia province, offshore Bintulu.
Petros group chief executive officer Janin Girie said with an abundance of storage potential in offshore areas, Sarawak is blessed with the biggest potential of carbon storage capacity in Malaysia.
“We welcome organisations who are committed to achieving their decarbonisation targets to explore utilising CCUS potential in Sarawak with us,” he said.
He added the development of CCUS infrastructure will unlock and commercialise the development of stranded sour gas reserves offshore Sarawak.
He said the additional gas unlocked by CCUS can ensure long-term energy and gas supply security for Sarawak — complementing the energy transition for Sarawak and Malaysia.
“Down the line, the base CCUS infrastructure established to enable the sour gas field development can be further expanded to allow other carbon dioxide (CO2) emitters, both local and foreign, to capture and store CO2, to reduce the greenhouse warming effect and enabling the realisation of a net carbon-zero economy,” he added.
“These infrastructure expansions, in turn, will create business opportunities to operate CCUS infrastructures, generating revenue for the State economy, whilst further developing local capabilities,” he stressed.
The handing over of the licence was witnessed by Sarawak Premier Tan Sri Abang Johari Openg after the opening of the Asia Carbon Conference 2023.
During Petros’ 5th year anniversary celebration in October last year, the premier announced that Petros, given its technical expertise and resources, would be the resource manager for CCUS in Sarawak, with collaboration and support from the relevant ministries.
