He said the discussion will explore the cooperation to be undertaken by both companies involving new projects in any field.

“The agreement reached (so far) between me, representing the government of Malaysia, and Sarawak premier (Abang Johari Openg) is to acknowledge all legal matters.

“I, together with deputy prime minister Fadilah Yusof, will contact the Sarawak government and, if possible, we will call for a meeting to hear their proposals.

“I think the best solution will be achieved,” he said at a press conference after the government’s ministerial retreat here today.

Anwar said Putrajaya acknowledged Sarawak’s state-level aspirations to engage in the oil and gas industry during a Dewan Rakyat briefing session on Monday.

He said this aspiration was enshrined in the state’s Distribution of Gas Ordinance (DGO) 2016 (Amendment), which will come into effect on March 1.

“The DGO, when read together with the Petroleum Development Act 1974 (PDA), stipulates that Petros will act as an aggregator in Sarawak,” he said.

Anwar, who is also the finance minister, said this role nevertheless maintained prior approvals granted to Petronas and its subsidiaries.

Abang Johari welcomed this, saying Petros’s participation in the O&G sector was part of Sarawak’s efforts to move towards becoming part of the economic ecosystem based on the principle of cooperation.

“We are not stingy. What we have, we share. Petronas and Petros must cooperate,” he said.