Petronas names new COO following Sarawak gas dispute: report

The company has also been struggling with declining profits and last year announced it was cutting around 10% of its workforce

Petroliam Nasional (Petronas) has appointed Mohd Jukris Abdul Wahab as its new chief operating officer, starting Feb 1, enhancing its senior leadership structure amid an ongoing legal dispute over gas assets in Sarawak, according to a report in The Edge.

The national oil company said that the new appointment would support group chief executive officer Tengku Muhammad Taufik in matters involving federal and state governments, according to the report, citing a company statement. Jukris is currently the chief executive officer of Petronas’ upstream business.

Petronas did not immediately respond to a request to comment on the appointment.

Petronas filed a motion with Malaysia’s apex court last week to decide on the company’s operations in Malaysia’s biggest state Sarawak, where it has been locked in a dispute over gas distribution rights with Sarawak’s state-owned Petroleum Sarawak since 2024.

The company has also been struggling with declining profits and last year announced it was cutting around 10 per cent of its workforce in light of falling oil prices amid global challenges. BLOOMBERG

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