Petronas, Sarawak to sign commercial settlement agreement on Dec 7

KUALA LUMPUR: The Sarawak government and Petronas will sign a commercial settlement on the issues of the state’s sales tax and oil mining laws on Monday (Dec 7), Sarawak State Assembly Speaker Datuk Amar Mohd Asfia Awang Nassar said today.

He said the State Consultative Committee, which he chairs, had been briefed on the commercial settlement by representatives of the state government involved in the negotiations with Petronas.

“The Consultative Committee at its meeting today was informed of the scope and salient features and terms of the commercial settlement and the significant benefits and advantages which the state would derive from the agreement. The details of the commercial settlement agreement (will) be released after it (has been) formally signed,” he said in a statement.

According to him, the signing ceremony would be held in Kuala Lumpur, with Sarawak to be represented by State Secretary Datuk Amar Jaul Samion and Petronas by its chairman Tan Sri Ahmad Nizam Salleh.

This ceremony will be witnessed by Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin and Sarawak Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg, in the presence of the negotiation teams from both the state government and Petronas, he said.

Mohd Asfia said the terms of the commercial settlement, which relates to the imposition of the state sales tax and Sarawak’s decision to regulate oil mining in the state under its laws, were agreed after extensive discussions between the state government, the Finance Ministry and Petronas.

He said the three parties had agreed in May this year for the issues to be resolved without going through the legal process, which had led to the legal actions commenced by Petronas and the state government being withdrawn last August.

“The federal government formed a Joint Committee headed by the Senior Minister for Works (Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof) and Minister of Finance (Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz) to facilitate the discussion between Sarawak and Petronas,” he added.

-- BERNAMA