KUALA LUMPUR - The completion of the Pengerang Integrated Petroleum Complex (PIPC) is likely to be delayed as Johor Petroleum Development Corp (JPDC) struggles to attract new big investors at a time when oil majors in the upstream segment are tightening their belts.

JPDC CEO Mohd Yazid Ja'afar (pix) said Phase 1 of PIPC is on track but future phases may see a slight delay. The master plan for the 20,000-acre project runs until 2035.

JPDC, the federal government agency that oversees the development of PIPC, has been facing difficulties in securing new investors.

"We couldn't get another Petronas (Petroliam Nasional Bhd) to come in. To ask another Petronas to come in, to set up and invest over RM100 billion, that is a bit tough in the current climate," Mohd Yazid told reporters at the MIDF Luncheon Talk titled "A Session with Pemandu on Infrastructure" yesterday.

"We do have difficulty in attracting new investors to come in. Obviously, a lot of these integrated players now they are looking at their books, thinking 'Can we survive? Can we ride out the storm?'

"So they are holding back their investment decisions. That's quite natural. That's the effect we are seeing on the ground at the moment. A lot slower investment will come in because, mind you, we are talking about massive investments. They will have to go through so many stages before they can come to the final decision on whether to invest or not. That is slowing down," he added.

On the masterplan for PIPC, Mohd Yazid said having been drafted back in 2010, there is now a need to review it to take into account the current market.

"For the whole area, we have a master plan until 2035. We finalised and drafted the masterplan back in 2010 when everything was hunky dory. Every five years the masterplan will need to be reviewed and we plan to do that this year. That will take into account the current scenario, what's going on now," he said.

"We plan to do that (review) this year and it will be finalised next year. We think there is a high likelihood that the end game, the timeline, will probably be stretched slightly longer than 2035," he added.

Mohd Yazid said the possible delay is due to the current economic climate and low oil prices as companies take a longer time to evaluate their investments because of restricted funds.

"It will take a lot longer for them to choose which project is worthwhile for them to do."

However, Mohd Yazid stressed that projects that have been committed are progressing as scheduled and there has been no sign or talk of delays. They include Petronas' Refinery and Petrochemicals Integrated Development (Rapid), which is in Phase 1 of PIPC. Rapid is on track to kick off in 2019 despite the capital expenditure cut announced by Petronas.

On the flip side, refiners are taking advantage of the rate at which crude prices are declining, which is much faster than the rate at which product prices are declining.

"So there is, if you like, a spread which refiners are taking advantage of. Downstream players are making huge amounts of money. These are best times for them but, within their own areas, there are limits. There are various opportunities, not everyone is enjoying the same benefit.

"Those with simpler refinery set-ups are enjoying a lot more benefits from this as opposed to those with a lot more complex refinery set ups. They can pick and choose the kind of crude they can process, because it is so cheap now. They can choose to suit their simple refinery set up," said Mohd Yazid. - Sundaily

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Growth seen slowing to 4.7% in 2016

KUALA LUMPUR (NewsRise) -- Malaysia's economic growth is likely to decelerate in 2016 for the third consecutive year amid feeble external demand and weak consumer spending, a state-backed think-tank said Wednesday.

Malaysian Institute Economic Research, or MIER projected gross domestic product to expand 4.7% this year with "substantial" downside risks, moderating from last year's 4.9% growth estimate and a 6.0% increase in 2014.

Consumer sentiment fell to a new record low in the final quarter of 2015, MIER's survey results released Wednesday showed, as Malaysians held back from splurging on big ticket purchases ranging from cars to real estate. The latest reading of business condition index, which among others measures factory output and orders, still "portends recessionary tendencies," MIER said.

"Growth will be driven largely by private sector expenditure while public sector expenditure is projected to be shaped by continuing fiscal consolidation process," it added.

The forecasts come a day ahead of Prime Minister Najib Razak's move to revise the government's annual budget that was unveiled in October. The budget had assumed crude oil prices to average $48 a barrel through 2016 and estimated GDP growth of between 4.5% and 5.5% for this year.

Belt-tightening measures and revisions to the budget 2016 could "elevate downside risks, hitting hard on private consumption, which is already on a moderating pace," MIER cautioned.

Malaysia has introduced a broad-based consumption tax in April to diversify its revenue sources as part of its consolidation efforts to trim its long-running budget deficit to 3.1% of GDP this year from 3.2% of GDP in 2015. The government has also removed subsidies including fuel and sugar to improve its fiscal health.

However, the measures have pushed up prices of goods and services across the economy, and could lift headline inflation this year to 3.0% from 2.1% in 2015, MIER predicted.

Brent, the global benchmark for crude oil, has tumbled more than one-third below the Malaysian government's estimate and was trading around $30 a barrel on Wednesday.

Malaysia has traditionally relied on the oil and gas sector to fill government coffers and fund massive spending on public projects. The unlisted Petronas, the sole Fortune 500 Company from the Southeast Asian nation and the country's most profitable enterprise, is the single largest source of government revenue contributing through taxes and dividends.

Petroleum receipts accounted for more than 40% of government revenue in 2009. That could fall to 14% in 2016, according to the federal budget that was unveiled in October.

Net exports from the trade-dependent country could contract at slower pace this year at 1.8% after shrinking 2.2% in 2015 amid a sluggish global economy, MIER said. Recent surge in exports could be "temporary" due to the plunge in the country's currency, it noted.

Malaysia's exports growth lost steam in November, rising 6.3% year-on-year, following a double-digit increase the previous month mainly due to weaker demand for the country's oil, gas and electronics.

The Malaysian ringgit shed more than 20% against the U.S. dollar in 2015, and could stay between 4.20 and 4.30 for the first six months this year, MIER executive director Zakariah Abdul Rashid said at a news conference on Wednesday.

The ringgit rose nearly 1% to 4.2525 against the U.S. dollar on Wednesday while the country's benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI ended 0.3% higher.

I lulus phone interview with BP ASPAC. Awaiting for second round F2F session. Aiyo. Mudahan sangkut. Lelz

Hhhhnggghhh today is my phone interview session with McDermott at 1000am. Hope tak kena delay & defer lagi. Wismilak. Lelz.

This is a rare opportunity to become MWS in O&G.

Fuhhhh panas telinga gua bro. The session was very tough. Ambik kau semua soalan technical keluar hahahahaha. Nasib baik aku ada hafal sikit pasal BIMCO lelz.

For those who about to have McDermott phone interview make sure you REALLY UNDERSTAND ABOUT OFFSHORE T&I and CONSTRUCTION. ESPECIALLY PASAL VESSEL CHARTERING. JENIS2 VESSEL CHARTER WIDELY USED DURING T&I CAMPAIGN, LEPAS TU BERAPA BOLLARD PULL, HORSEPOWER APA JADAH, APA ITU DP2 AND DP3, APA CERTIFICATE YANG MWS KELUARKAN MASA LOAD OUT AND SAILWAY ETC SO BAWAK2 LAA BERKAWAN NGAN BUDAK2 MWS OFFSHORE KAT SANA LELZ

Thats all for my rants.

Is it one of Petronas ITIC contractor? Hehe

SATU LAGI PASAL MCDERMOTT PHONE INTERVIEW. MAKE SURE YOUR INTERNET CONNECTION LAJU KAT SMARTPHONE/LAPTOP/PC SO THAT YOU CAN GOOGLE SOME OF TECHNICAL JARGON QUICKLY. AKU PUN MENGGELABAH JUGAK KEJAP TADI HAHAHAHAHA NASIB JAWAB IKUT DEFINITION GOOLE LELZ

Sorry my capslock rosak. Hehe

Yup it was intense. Nasib ada handsfree earphone cucuk kat telepon. So takdelah panas sangat telinga. Saja jer aku buat statement gempak ahahahahahaha

The Contract Manager & Marine Manager was very very very experienced fella. I can sense that.

Laptop standby depan mata bro while talking. Google website ready. Aku mixed up insurance definition especially on CAR and general liability hahahahaha nasib sempat Google. Menggelabah te**k kejap tadi hahahahahaha

Aku rasa budak TLO yang Marine department sure banyak apply with McDermott. Hope I can be selected for F2F interview next week.

Lagi satu nak share, please study about BIMCO in details. It does give a good impression during interview with McDermott.

Saipem KSA machiam ada banyak vacancies.

Tanya bro. Semua details masa pre and post award. So aku cerita la sebijik2. Lepas tu macam mana handling VO ape semua. Masa prelim tendering how to prepare budgeting and costing. Lagi satu tricky dalam provision of contract which article yang aku rasa penting and why? So aku jawab la schedule of rates and HSE articles. Aku taram jawab sebab masa prepare subcontract kena faham betul2 prime contract from Client ITB to which relate jawapan schedule rates and HSE. Aku goreng cakap kalau salah estimate rates derived from prime contract will give impact during costing preparation for subcontract. Lepas tu on HSE part aku cakap different client ada different HSE legislation depending on which country they operate. Aku bantai Norfolk, US Coastguard safety codes which is kalau tak betul2 faham masa baca prime contract from client akan bagi kesan jugak untuk subcontract for HSE part. Diorang banyak tanya detail part on marine bro. Fireproofing pun tanya, aku jawab passive and active fireproofing. Apa jenis fireproofing? Tebal berapa? Brand apa? Nasib aku ingat pasal Rockwool hahahahaha sebab ada experience kerja kat fab yard. Lepas tu mechanical package apa yang aku buat, E&I SCADA yada yada ambik kau tanya technical. Lepas tu schedule rates macam mana aku produce untuk subcontract etc.

Memang kena prepare betul2 for this phone interview with McDermott. Kalau selected F2F memang masak laa aku hahahahaha

Marine warranty surveyor. Independent third party inspector. Classification society.

Better kau bergaul ngan budak2 fab yard bro. Serious. Dig more from them.

Among all interview I had before, I never been drilled so deep into technical stuff haha even Hess was a bit relax. I consider myself lucky for being exposed, mixing with a right group of peoples from previous projects which taught me so much knowledge.

10 years, and I still a noob in this industry. So much things to learn. Its a humble journey. Hehe.

Thanks To add another MWS - Aqualis Offshore, London Offshore Consultant (LOC)

KPOC is recruiting,

Mostly yeah.

Yup no bonus for permanent executive level, except for non-executive permanent whereby mandatory two month due to union collective agreement.