KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 28): The Malaysian oil and gas (O&G) output is likely to see an upswing within the next five years and continue to contribute significantly, together with the services sector, to gross domestic product (GDP).
Minister in the Prime Minister's Department, Datuk Seri Idris Jala, said last year, the sector declined by 5.7 per cent and the lower oil output had affected economic growth.
Idris, who is also Performance Management & Delivery Unit (Pemandu) chief executive officer, said this when asked whether Malaysia was over-dependent on the O&G sector at a media briefing with International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed.
Earlier, both ministers met the foreign missions and business councils here.
He said the Malaysian economy, despite the contraction, managed to record a 5.1 per cent growth last year which indicated that the services sector was really growing.
"I think in the past we have relied quite a lot on the O&G sector to grow, no doubt about it and we are taking all the necessary measures to make the services sector grow.
"By 2020, with all the focus on the tourism, education, financial services, wholesale and retail and healthcare sectors, we will see a major shift in our economy moving more into the services sector," he said.
Idris said the O&G was still Malaysia's single largest sector and "if we had no decline, the GDP growth last year could have been more than six per cent or maybe 6.5 per cent".
The decline was mainly due to the maintenance works in Peninsular Malaysia and the drop in production of the Murphy Oil's Kikeh field, Malaysia's first deep-water oil field, was due to sand in the oil and would take about or more than two years to solve, he said.
Thus, he said, with the committed huge investments of about RM132 billion by the O&G industry players coming in, it is possible to arrest the decline in the sector as well as enable the services sector to grow more prominently in contributing to the country's GDP.
"I do not think we will see immediate reduction in the decline as it will take some time. I would say with all the other things we are doing in other areas to increase production coupled with investments, it would appear in the next couple of years (less than five years), you will see an upswing in production," he said.
Meanwhile, Mustapa said, the session with the foreign missions and business council were very much focused on halal and visa matters.
He said the government would continue to engage with them to work out the matters and welcomes more sessions to work together as well as to continuously update on the Malaysian progress. - Bernama
Minister in the Prime Minister's Department, Datuk Seri Idris Jala, said last year, the sector declined by 5.7 per cent and the lower oil output had affected economic growth.
Idris, who is also Performance Management & Delivery Unit (Pemandu) chief executive officer, said this when asked whether Malaysia was over-dependent on the O&G sector at a media briefing with International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed.
Earlier, both ministers met the foreign missions and business councils here.
He said the Malaysian economy, despite the contraction, managed to record a 5.1 per cent growth last year which indicated that the services sector was really growing.
"I think in the past we have relied quite a lot on the O&G sector to grow, no doubt about it and we are taking all the necessary measures to make the services sector grow.
"By 2020, with all the focus on the tourism, education, financial services, wholesale and retail and healthcare sectors, we will see a major shift in our economy moving more into the services sector," he said.
Idris said the O&G was still Malaysia's single largest sector and "if we had no decline, the GDP growth last year could have been more than six per cent or maybe 6.5 per cent".
The decline was mainly due to the maintenance works in Peninsular Malaysia and the drop in production of the Murphy Oil's Kikeh field, Malaysia's first deep-water oil field, was due to sand in the oil and would take about or more than two years to solve, he said.
Thus, he said, with the committed huge investments of about RM132 billion by the O&G industry players coming in, it is possible to arrest the decline in the sector as well as enable the services sector to grow more prominently in contributing to the country's GDP.
"I do not think we will see immediate reduction in the decline as it will take some time. I would say with all the other things we are doing in other areas to increase production coupled with investments, it would appear in the next couple of years (less than five years), you will see an upswing in production," he said.
Meanwhile, Mustapa said, the session with the foreign missions and business council were very much focused on halal and visa matters.
He said the government would continue to engage with them to work out the matters and welcomes more sessions to work together as well as to continuously update on the Malaysian progress. - Bernama
