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KUALA LUMPUR: Sabah, through SMJ Energy Sdn Bhd (SMJE), has acquired a 20 per cent participating interest in the North Sabah Enhanced Oil Recovery Production Sharing Contract (EOR PSC) following the signing of a Farm-Out Agreement (FOA) with Petronas Carigali Sdn Bhd at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre here on Monday.

Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor said the initiative reflects the State Government’s long-term strategy to strengthen Sabah’s energy sector through high-quality investments and close collaboration with Petronas, adding that with opportunities expanding across the state from the west to the east coast, reputable investors are welcomed to ensure sustainable and lasting benefits for the people of Sabah.

The acquisition, effective Jan 1, 2026, follows the Heads of Agreement signed between SMJE and Petronas Carigali in November 2025 and marks SMJE’s second upstream acquisition since entering the Samarang PSC in April 2023.

The North Sabah EOR PSC comprises four producing oil fields in shallow waters about 70 metres deep offshore Kota Belud, with 20 offshore platforms linked by a 143-kilometre, 24-inch pipeline to the Labuan Crude Oil Terminal, and upon completion SMJE will hold a 20 per cent non-operating interest alongside operator SEA Hibiscus Sdn Bhd with 50 per cent and Petronas Carigali with 30 per cent.

The transaction is expected to increase SMJE’s crude entitlement from 4.7 cargoes in 2025 to 7.0 cargoes in 2026, while document exchanges also took place for a Heads of Agreement between Petronas and Sabah Energy Corporation for the Mutiara Cluster and for the Permata Cluster Production Sharing Contract between Petronas and Bridge Petroleum Limited.