Talks on Saudi firm’s US$7b Rapid investment concluded

KUALA LUMPUR: The negotiation on Saudi Aramco’s US$7 billion (RM27.4 billion) investment in Petronas’ Refinery and Petrochemical Integrated Development project (Rapid) in Pengerang, Johor, has been concluded, said Minister in the Prime Minister Department, Datuk Seri Abdul Rahman Dahlan.

“We expect the US$7 billion investment to be in by end of this month,” he told reporters after announcing the update on the project in his opening speech at the four-day Offshore Technology Conference Asia yesterday.

Also present at the conference (which started yesterday) was Petronas president and CEO Tan Sri Wan Zulkiflee Wan Ariffin.

The Pengerang Integrated Complex (PIC) project was designed to produce premium differentiated petrochemicals to meet domestic demand for petroleum products and the Malaysian government’s future legislative requirements upon the implementation of Euro 5 emission standards.

With an investment of US$27 billion, PIC supports the government’s overall Economic Transformation Programme and puts Malaysia in a strategic position to capitalise on the growing need for energy and commodity petrochemical products in Asia for the next 20 years.

“This will spur the growth of Malaysia’s oil and gas downstream sector, pushing Malaysia into a new frontier of technological and economic development,” he said.

Abdul Rahman said Saudi Aramco’s investment demonstrated international investors’ confidence in Malaysia as a preferred investment destination. – Bernama