KelabCheDet.Com - Tun M Dapatkan Deal Blok M & L, Tun Dollah Pulangkan Semula Deal Tersebut

maruah_melayu menulis "Siapa yang sebenarnya yang 'settle' kan isu blok minyak ni? Tun Abdullah atau Tun M? Siapa yang sebenarnya dapatkan Joint-Exploration Arrangement antara Malaysia dan Brunei dalam isu Blok M dan Blok L tu pada tahun 2003? Kenapa pula Tun Abdullah memulangkan semula Blok M dan Blok L yang sudah pun dipersetujui oleh Malaysia dan Brunei dalam JE Arrangement pada tahun 2003?

Straits Times, 3 July 2003

KL plan to end oilfield row with Brunei

The proposal calls for a joint-exploration arrangement for the disputed area about 150km off the coast of Sabah[/b]. Malaysia is confident of resolving its territorial dispute with Brunei over the ownership of oil-rich waters in the South China Sea. The regional news magazine, Far Eastern Economic Review, reported in its latest issue that Malaysian officials have proposed a joint-exploration arrangement to Brunei

The arrangement is similar to the one Malaysia already has with Thailand. 'We have suggested a joint-development-area type solution,' Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar told the magazine. 'We have even suggested that after a certain time passes, we will give up more. What we are looking for is a win-win situation,' he added.

The dispute over the oilfield arose after the discovery of oil in the sea some 150km off the coast of Sabah by Malaysia's state-owned oil company, Petronas, in July last year. The field - dubbed Kikeh - has an estimated recoverable reserve of up to 700 million barrels, or 21 per cent of Malaysia's current oil reserves. At current production levels, Malaysia is expected to run out of oil in 15 years' time.

The Kikeh discovery is large enough to arrest the decline in the country's oil reserves and provide a helpful cushion for the country's economy, according to the Review. Soon after, Malaysia and Brunei hired prospectors to explore two nearby blocks. Brunei awarded one block to a consortium led by French company Total this year, and is negotiating with a consortium led by Royal Dutch/Shell for the rights to prospect the second.

Meanwhile, Malaysia's Petronas has awarded both blocks to a subsidiary and to Murphy Oil. So what are the reasons for the dispute?

In 2000, Brunei claimed sovereignty over the blocks as part of an 'exclusive economic zone', or EEZ, which stretches 370km from its coastline. But Malaysia has also long claimed the same area as part of its own EEZ. Analysts say the Kikeh oilfield could extend into the concession that Brunei has awarded to Total.

In March, Brunei sent a gunboat to drive away a Murphy Oil drilling ship from the area. The next month, the Malaysian navy sent several gunboats into the disputed area to block the arrival of a Total ship. After a tense stand-off involving a single Brunei patrol craft, Total backed off. Both sides have since stopped all work in the disputed areas.

Finally, on May 24, Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad met Brunei's Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah on Malaysia's Penang island to resolve the issue. Malaysia�s proposal of joint exploration is similar to the one it has with Thailand in exploring oil in the Gulf of Thailand under a 50-50 profit-sharing arrangement. According to the Review, Malaysia may use the dispute as leverage to settle other outstanding issues, such as Malaysia's land border with Brunei near the Limbang River, an issue that has persisted for decades. Dr Mahathir has promised to resolve the matter before he retires in October. Meanwhile, energy officials in Kuala Lumpur say the dispute 'should be cleared up in two months'.
"