Petronas pays 44% of Government’s revenue
AT THE DEWAN RAKYAT
Reports by LEE YUK PENG, ZULKIFLI ABD RAHMAN AND LOH FOON FONG
PETRONAS has contributed RM62.8bil or 44% of the Government’s revenue this year, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said in his written reply to Fong Kui Lun (DAP – Bukit Bintang).
He said the Government would continue to own Petronas as it was the largest revenue contributor, and that the company would not be listed on the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange.
However, four of its subsidiaries – Petronas Dagangan Bhd, Petronas Gas Bhd, MISC Bhd and KLCC Property Holdings Bhd – are listed on the stock exchange, he said.
Meanwhile, Second Finance Minister Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Yakcop, when winding-up the debate on his ministry at the committee stage later, said the main bondholders of ValueCap Sdn Bhd have agreed to refinance the RM5.1bil loan taken from the Employees Provident Fund (EPF).
He also gave an assurance that the loan, which was due by February next year, would not be used to repay ValueCap’s outstanding loans.
“The loan will remain a loan. EPF is not holding any equity in ValueCap, there is no risk to EPF contributors and the loan is fully guaranteed by the Government,” he said.
He said ValueCap’s main bondholders – the Pensions Trust Fund Council, Khazanah Nasional Bhd and Permodalan Nasional Bhd – had agreed to the refinancing programme, while ValueCap would also pay the loan interest during the same period.
He said ValueCap, which was established by the ministry to invest in undervalued stocks on the local bourse, would invest in stocks with strong fundamentals and high economic potential.
Malaysia Star, Malaysia
