GPS man calls on Sarawak to build its own oil refineries

 Lo Khere Chiang says the state will be able to reduce crude outflow, boost revenue and create thousands of skilled jobs for locals by doing so.

Batu Kitang assemblyman Lo Khere Chiang said Sarawak should emulate Singapore and harness its resources for a better future. (Facebook pic)

PETALING JAYA:

 A Gabungan Parti Sarawak assemblyman has proposed that the state emulate Singapore and build its own oil refineries.

Lo Khere Chiang said Sarawak would be able to reduce crude outflow, boost revenue and create thousands of skilled jobs for locals if it had its own refineries, the Dayak Daily reported.

“The time has come to harness our resources for our own future,” the Batu Kitang assemblyman from the Sarawak United People’s Party was quoted as saying.

Singapore’s oil refining sector is primarily concentrated on Jurong Island. Its three main refineries have a refining capacity of 1.5 million barrels per day.

Lo’s call for Sarawak to build its own refineries comes amid the state’s push for greater control over its oil and gas resources.

Earlier this evening, the federal and Sarawak governments reaffirmed the respective roles of national oil company Petronas and Sarawak’s state-owned Petros in developing the state’s oil and gas industry.

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said the joint statement issued with Sarawak premier Abang Johari Openg recognised the state’s growing capabilities and its rights under the Petroleum Development Act (PDA) and the Distribution of Gas Ordinance, while preserving Petronas’s strategic role at the national level.

Separately, Lo claimed that there was growing discontent over how the PDA and Territorial Sea Act 2012 had been imposed “without consultation, consent or fairness on Sarawak”.

He said for the past 50 years, Sarawak had surrendered more than RM1 trillion worth of oil and gas while receiving disproportionately little in return.

“This is being used to attack the GPS government.” - FMT