KUALA LUMPUR: The planned US$7 billion investment by Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Saudi Aramco) in Petroliam Nasional Bhd’s (Petronas) Refinery and Petrochemical Integrated Development (RAPID) is still in progress, said Second Finance Minister Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani.
He said the deal was “still on” and the parties were in talks for the proposed investment.
He was speaking to reporters on the sidelines of SCxSC Digital Finance Conference 2017 here today.
His comment further reaffirmed Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Abdul Rahman Dahlan’s remark that Saudi Aramco was expected to finalise its investment in the project soon.
Rahman was quoted by Bernama as saying in a recent interview that the government was giving both Petronas and Saudi Aramco an opportunity to resolve several technical issues.
“There are several terms and conditions that the parties have to meet and it is an ongoing process.
“I expect that it would not be long before they (Saudi Aramco) begin channelling their funds for the RAPID project,” he was quoted as saying.
In February this year, Petronas and Saudi Aramco signed a share purchase agreement for the latter to buy a 50 per cent stake in RAPID.
The agreement saw both parties having an equal equity stake in selected ventures and assets of the venture.
The deal was made during Saudi Arabian ruler King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud’s visit to Malaysia.