Lo Khere Chiang of the Sarawak United Peoples’ Party said the project was still at the feasibility stage, the Borneo Post reported.

“It (the door to future investments) could very well remain open for ConocoPhillips to re-engage, this time with Sarawak represented by Petros and on terms that are fairer for Sarawak,” he was quoted as saying, referring to the state’s sole gas aggregator.

ConocoPhillips said on April 30 that it had elected not to progress with the development of the deepwater oil and gas field, also known as Block WL4-00, “based solely on prioritisation within the company’s global portfolio”.

Block WL4-00, discovered jointly with Petronas in 2018, was developed under a 50:50 joint venture.

Lo said a more balanced structure could take the form of a 50:50 joint venture between Sarawak and ConocoPhillips, adding that the state government might still allocate 5% to the federal government.

“If Petronas can form joint ventures and operate oil fields, then so can Petros, with proper capacity-building and strategic partnerships,” he said.

The Batu Kitang assemblyman added that even when the national oil company holds a 50% stake, the actual operational work is still carried out by international companies like Shell or ConocoPhillips.

He said if ConocoPhillips chose to step away, other companies would decide to invest, especially if Sarawak remained open to international investors and offered a transparent, fair, and mutually beneficial investment climate.