OFFSHORE Terengganu was Petronas’ first frontier in oil exploration. Carigali, the exploration and production (E&P) arm of the national oil company was incorporated in 1978, four years after Petronas was set up and two years after the first production sharing contracts (PSC) were concluded with Shell and ExxonMobil.
It was a bold and courageous move especially for a young company which had neither the expertise nor the experience in the upstream sector. In the history of the world’s national oil companies, mot many had dared to venture into E&P so soon after their establishment. Many prefer to choose the safer and cheaper route in the oil business) that is, basically as hosts and the ultimate owners of their respective hydrocarbon resources, to collect royalties and taxes from foreign oil companies operating in their countries.
Next thing to do would be tofsell their share of crude oil derived from the PSCs to the international market, followed perhaps by domestic retail operations through the setting-up of their own retail outlets, or through the acquisition of petrol stations belonging to foreign oil companies operating there.
For Petronas, a national oil company should be more than this.