Petronas subsidiaries mixed in early session amid workforce cut announcement

KUALA LUMPUR: Petroliam Nasional Bhd’s (Petronas) four listed subsidiaries among Bursa Malaysia’s top 30 showed mixed performance in early trading amid its plan to cut 10 per cent of its workforce.

The national oil company announced yesterday that the move will help to cope with challenging operating conditions, particularly due to falling crude prices.

As at 10.24 am, MISC was flat at RM7.60, Petronas Dagangan was 10 sen lower at RM21.04, Petronas Chemicals Group decreased 6.0 sen to RM3.30, and Petronas Gas was flat at RM18.18.

According to reports on Thursday, Petronas president/group chief executive officer Tan Sri Tengku Muhammad Taufik Tengku Aziz said the number of staff involved in the right-sizing process currently stands at around 5,000. Those affected will be notified in stages next year.

Petronas has based its budget on Brent crude trading between US$75 and US$80 per barrel.

The benchmark is currently near US$65, down roughly 13 per cent this year, amid global trade tensions and rising OPEC+ output.

The group reported a net profit of RM55.1 billion for the financial year ended Dec 31, 2024, down 31.7 per cent from RM80.7 billion a year earlier, due to lower average realised prices and favourable tax adjustments in 2023.