SPENDING PLANS OUTLINED FOR MALAYSIA

Private companies will spend $2.1 billion for oil and gas exploration, development, and production in Malaysia during the fiscal year ending Mar. 31, 1994, state owned Petronas predicts. That sum will be easily topped because it does not include upstream spending planned by Petronas Carigali Sdn. Bhd., a unit of Petronas billed as the third most active exploration and production company in Malaysia after the Royal Dutch/Shell and Esso groups.

Aug. 30, 1993

2 min read

Private companies will spend $2.1 billion for oil and gas exploration, development, and production in Malaysia during the fiscal year ending Mar. 31, 1994, state owned Petronas predicts.

That sum will be easily topped because it does not include upstream spending planned by Petronas Carigali Sdn. Bhd., a unit of Petronas billed as the third most active exploration and production company in Malaysia after the Royal Dutch/Shell and Esso groups.

A Petronas prospectus, issued when the company recently raised $500 million in the U.S., said Petronas Carigali expects to commit about $1.24 billion for exploration, development, and production in the current fiscal year.

The $2.1 billion in planned private investment exceeds the $1.8 billion spent in fiscal 1993. In fiscal 1992, private firms spent $1.8 billion, while in fiscal 1991 they spent $1.5 billion.

The prospectus also showed the firms drilled 32 wells and made 20 discoveries this fiscal N,ear. In fiscal 1992, they drilled 61 wells and were successful in 41. In fiscal 1991, they were successful in 21 wells out of 41 spudded.

The success rate for oil and gas discoveries was one in three exploration wells drilled in 1957-92, the prospectus said. For oil discovery it was one in six wells.

Present activities of nongovernment firms cover 210,200 sq km of the 523,100 sq km of land. and seabed available for oil and gas exploration in the country.

The prospectus also disclosed that crude oil is the biggest contributor to Petronas revenue. However, Petronas' total gas revenue has been steadily increasing since 1990.