The Sarawak premier said negotiations between Sarawak and Petronas were currently “just a matter of technical arrangements”, The Borneo Post reported.

Abang Johari also said the matter would not need to be settled through arbitration, reiterating that Sarawak operated under two laws when it came to natural gas distribution – the Petroleum Development Act 1974 (PDA) and Oil Mining Ordinance 1958 (OMO).

“OMO has existed earlier than the PDA and even before Malaysia was formed. This law is still valid, and we have not repealed it. So, this means that it has to co-exist with the PDA and we will give an exemption in terms of distribution of gas domestically.”

Previously, Abang Johari was quoted as saying that talks with Petronas were set to conclude before Oct 1.

It was then reported last month that Petronas was considering filing a court injunction against Sarawak regarding the rights to distribute natural gas in the state.

The report by a Singapore-based news portal had quoted anonymous government officials as saying Petronas was mulling legal action to defend its monopoly over the country’s petroleum and gas resources.

However, the state government, Petronas, and Petros later denied the news report and reiterated that discussions were ongoing.