Petronas denies claims of shutting down 14 rigs and projects

Petronas, Malaysia’s state-owned oil and gas giant, has refuted allegations in news reports stating the company has deactivated 14 rigs and shut down 14 projects.

In a statement last Saturday, Petronas said that news reports, published by the New Straits Times on 24 April 2020, said the company had deactivated 14 oil rigs, as reported in the print version, and shut down 14 projects, as reported in the electronic version.

Petronas clarified that the company had not shut down any of its rigs, offshore Malaysia, other than those concluding their drilling campaigns or under temporary suspensions due to the current COVID-19 pandemic.

On 25 April, 18 rigs were in operation within Malaysia waters, Petronas noted.

Petronas also clarified that there was a temporary suspension of projects at some worksites due to the Movement Control Order (MCO) implemented by the government.

Currently, most of these projects have either resumed their work activities or will be resuming soon upon securing the necessary approval from the government, the company explained.

Petronas concluded it is looking to minimise the impact to its planned domestic capex programme in the face of the current challenges.

However, the company does expect that some projects will be naturally delayed due to the prolonged lockdowns implemented globally and the MCO in Malaysia, and further disruptions anticipated to the global supply chain.