Chairman: Fuel prices determined by govt and not by Petronas

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KUCHING: The price of petrol in the country is based on current retail prices determined by the government and not Petronas.

Petronas chairman Tan Sri Sidek Hassan said the national oil and gas company was not responsible for the fluctuating price of petrol as its role was only to produce oil.

“It has been agreed that petrol pump prices (based on the government’s decision) is tagged to the market. So when the market moves up then it will go up and vice versa.

“That is the process and it will even out in the long run following market prices,” he told a press conference after presenting Petronas’ initial corporate social responsibility (CSR) contribution of RM90 million to Sarawak which was received by Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Adenan Satem at a leading hotel here yesterday.

He was asked to comment on the price hike of 10 sen a litre for RON95 petrol and 20 sen for RON97 petrol effective yesterday.

“In June last year, the crude oil price was at US$115 per barrel and now it’s hovering around US$62 to US$64 per barrel. So the price is almost half and that does impact us.

“But it has stabilised and it’s not dropping much further. So we hope it will go up again which will be good for Petronas and the nation,” he said.

On whether the price of petrol in the country would continue to increase, Sidek said this was dependent on the market.

“The movement and changes is depending on the market and that is beyond our control.”

Also present at the press conference were Adenan and Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Alfred Jabu Numpang.

Earlier at the ceremony, Sidek in his speech said the RM90 million initial CSR contribution was to kick-start the five year (2015-2019) CSR initiatives to be implemented in the state to enhance education, community development and wellbeing as well as environmental conservation in Sarawak.

Some of these initiatives include the construction of a new Maktab Rendah Sains Mara (MRSM) in Bintulu and two hostels to cater for rural students; adoption of five schools in Lundu under the Trust School Programme in collaboration with Yayasan Amir; enhancement of technical skills via the Vocational Institution Sponsorship and Training Assistance (Vista); new sponsorship programme with Mara through Program Budi-Petronas for underprivileged students in MRSM in Sarawak; and increase of intake for Graduate Employability Enhancement Scheme from Sarawak.

“Petronas will also increase its educational sponsorship under the Program Sentuhan Ilmu Petronas (PSIP) and Petronas Education Sponsorship Programme (PESP) for students in Sarawak.

“This year, some 37 students in the state were awarded Petronas sponsorships to pursue their tertiary education locally and overseas,” he said.

In addition, Sidek pointed out that 11 additional CSR projects to enhance community wellbeing and environmental conservation would also be implemented in collaboration with relevant state government agencies.

“They include the conservation of coral reefs at the 12,200ha Sibuti Reef Complex located within the 186,930ha Miri-Sibuti Marine National Park; building of community centres; setting up of Petrosains Playsmart Centre; sponsorship of Sarawak Regatta; contribution to deserving local NGOs; and the implementation of disaster relief support programmes.

“Petronas is steadfast in empowering the community through initiatives focused on education, community development and wellbeing, as well as environment,” he remarked, adding that Petronas would continue to support all long term initiatives for the betterment of the state and its community.