Kuala Lumpur: Malaysian state-oil and gas firm Petronas is to cut back on international exploration with a stronger emphasis on developing domestic fields. Datuk Shamsul Azhar Abbas, president and ceo of Petronas, told local media the company planned to scale back exploration activities in over 30 countries as results had not matched expectations. Savings from reduced international exploration would be invested in Malaysia, including greater production from existing wells. He said the recovery factor of oil in Malaysia was around 23% compared with between 42% and 45% in the North Sea. Petronas will now also look to acquire proven reserves rather than drilling for them. "What's more important now is asset quality in terms of returns and not just size," Shamsul said. "We have to make the tough decision on areas to divest, harvest or spend more money for economies of scale." Shamsul took over as Petronas ceo earlier this year, previously he was chief of its shipping unit MISC. [07/06/10]
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