KINABALU: State Barisan Nasional (BN) secretary Datuk Abdul Rahman Dahlan has cautioned the people that the opposition’s promise of 15 per cent increase in oil royalty to Sabah could ultimately result in a financial blow to Petronas “which may lead to bankruptcy”.
He pointed out that based on the current formula, for every RM100 revenue derived from Sabah’s oil, five per cent goes to the state’s coffers while another five per cent to Federal coffers.
“Approximately 45 per cent goes into recovery cost, and the remaining 45 per cent goes to the joint venture’s gross profit.
“In the end, it is as clear as the dawn of the morning sky that Petronas’ profit, after splitting revenue with others and after paying taxes, is only around 16.74 per cent.
“If Petronas is asked to pay up the 15 per cent from its profit margin, this would effectively render them unable to pay their overheads, financial commitments and re-investment for future income. The end result would be a financial blow which may lead to bankruptcy,” he said yesterday at a press conference. — Bernama