By Danial Azhar
KUALA LUMPUR- Malaysia expects lower natural gas and crude oil output in 2025 due to the planned shutdowns of some production facilities for maintenance and easing demand in some export markets, the government said on Friday.
In a report released alongside its 2025 budget, the government said natural gas production was projected to decline in 2025 due to the planned closures of two facilities in Sarawak state for maintenance. It did not name the two facilities.
“The overall production of natural gas is expected to remain below the 2024 capacity, despite several new plants being scheduled to commence operations,” the government said.
It also expects moderating demand from major liquified natural gas (LNG) importers such as Japan, China and South Korea. China and Japan are the world’s top two LNG importers, with Japan a key LNG export market for Malaysia.
The crude oil and condensate subsector was also expected to contract, the government said, due to lower production in Peninsular Malaysia following scheduled maintenance of facilities in the second half of 2025.
Overall, the mining sector was forecast to contract by 1 percent in 2025 compared to projected growth of 2.2 percent in 2024, it said.
Exports of mining goods were projected to expand 2.1 percent in 2025, slowing from estimated growth of 2.8 percent this year on expected softer demand for LNG and crude petroleum.
Lower crude oil production and prices are expected to weigh on Malaysia’s petroleum-related revenue and tax collection, the government said. It projects Brent crude oil prices to average between $75 and $80 per barrel in 2025.
National energy firm Petroliam Nasional Berhad, or Petronas a significant contributor to federal revenue, is expected to pay the government a dividend of 32 billion ringgit ($7.4 billion) in 2025, the same as its payment this year. -Reuters
