In a statement today, the foreign ministry said it has exerted “multiple diplomatic efforts” to address the issues, adding that the meeting this morning was the second time the Sudanese representative has been summoned over the matter.
“The government is extremely concerned over the issue pertaining to the Petronas Sudan Complex in Khartoum,” said the statement.
“Since the issue surfaced in December 2020, the foreign affairs ministry has been working closely with Petronas, including through our embassy in Khartoum, to resolve the matter.”
According to a report by Istanbul-based news portal Daily Sabah on Oct 5, the Sudanese transitional government is seeking to confiscate assets belonging to Petronas, alleging they were acquired through illegal means during the rule of Omar al-Bashir.
Following the ouster of al-Bashir, the transitional government passed laws and formed the Empowerment Removal, Anti-Corruption and Money Retrieving Committee, tasked with reviewing agreements and retrieving assets that were allegedly acquired through illegal means during the previous administration.
The report said the land where the Petronas Sudan Complex currently stands was acquired and registered under Nada Properties Co Ltd (NPCL), a subsidiary of Petronas in Sudan.
However, Sudan transferred the ownership of NPCL to Khartoum’s finance ministry and “deprived Petronas of its rightful ownership of the company,” according to the report.
Petronas has been operating in Sudan for more than 20 years and helped the country to become an oil-exporting nation.
Other foreign investors in Sudan have faced similar predicaments, including those from Pakistan, Qatar, and Turkey, the report said.
In today’s statement, Wisma Putra urged the Sudanese government to honour the Bilateral Investment Promotion and Protection Treaty in force between Malaysia and Sudan.
As the Petronas Sudan Complex also houses the Malaysian embassy, Wisma Putra also urged the Sudanese government to honour the diplomatic premises as provided for under the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations 1961.
Wisma Putra added that it remains hopeful for a timely and amicable resolution of the issue with the view of preserving the longstanding ties between Malaysia and Sudan.