Premier’s pol-sec hails Distribution of Gas Ordinance 2016 as ‘economic victory for Sarawak’
The Distribution of Gas Ordinance 2016 represents a pivotal step towards securing a robust income stream for Sarawak.
In stating this, Kho Teck Wan, a political secretary to Premier of Sarawak, regards the Ordinance as a ‘significant economic victory’ for the state.
In her view, Sarawak now has the authority to regulate and charge companies utilising the gas distribution lines, not just for household cooking gas, but also for the vast industrial gas flow from the shores to factories.
“As far as I am aware, Tokyo relies on 15 per cent of its gas supply from Sarawak. This places us among the Top 5 gas producers globally. It represents a substantial revenue stream, a significant source of income, and that is precisely what we have been advocating for.
“We successfully secured it (revenue stream) following the gazettement of the Ordinance in 2016, and it has been in effect since last November,” she said in her speech during a Chinese New Year gathering at a café here yesterday.
Adding on, Kho said as the government would begin charging for gas distribution this year, she called for public support, emphasising that the move was not solely about household gas, but also about the strategic effort to boost Sarawak’s economic prosperity.
Moreover, she reiterated the significance of Ordinance, which was initiated by the late chief minister Pehin Sri Adenan Satem back in 2016, in that it was intended to grant Sarawak the autonomy over the distribution of gas harvested from the sea by major companies such as Petronas and Shell.