Insights
Strategic Insights
Most People See a Gas Pipeline. We Saw a Digital Corridor.
In 2023, management asked a simple question: how do we create more value from an asset we already own? Not another pipeline, not more throughput, but the PGU Right-of-Way seen through an entirely different lens. That journey became LinkaranFibre.
28 Years, Two Dates, One Journey
Today is my last working day at PETRONAS. I joined on 1 August 1998. Two dates, separated by 28 years, and one lesson that stayed constant throughout: nothing meaningful is delivered by one person alone.
Fish Head Curry, Tanah Melayu and the Table We Share
A lunch with former PETRONAS colleagues, and a reflection on why the term Tanah Melayu so quickly invites accusations of racism. Citizenship does not require identical histories. Unity does not require amnesia.
A Data Centre Is Not Just a Digital Project. It Is an Energy System.
MIDA reports roughly 4.6 GW of data-centre capacity planned or under construction in Malaysia. To the electricity system, that is a large, concentrated and round-the-clock source of demand. The question is not how many data centres Malaysia can attract, but what energy architecture must be built so digital growth strengthens the national energy system.
When Decisions Never Leave The Meeting Room
KWAP's RM163.4 million exposure to eFishery is not merely a private venture-capital loss. It is a reminder that a system cannot be redesigned only by those who understand policy papers, legal structures and financial models. The people who have operated it must also be in the room.
Investment Needs Openness. Sovereignty Needs Boundaries.
The revocation of Network School's licence in Forest City is more than an isolated enforcement case. It is a reminder that not every investment challenge is an investment problem. Sometimes it is a governance problem, and strong enforcement strengthens investor confidence rather than weakening it.
What TNB's Latest RFI Tells Us About Malaysia's Gas Market
TNB's Request for Information on its gas supply value chain strategy looks like a procurement exercise. Read closely, it is a systems-thinking exercise about where TNB should position itself as Malaysia's gas market enters structural transition.
Two Countries, Similar Gas Discoveries, Very Different Outcomes
Malaysia and Tanzania entered the natural gas era at roughly the same time, with comparable resource bases. Four decades on, their development trajectories look remarkably different — a reminder that natural resources do not automatically create prosperity. Systems and ecosystems do.
A Gas Master Plan Is Not a Pipeline Plan
In 2014, I represented PETRONAS as a gas subject-matter expert in Tanzania's Big Results Now! programme, helping develop the country's Gas Master Plan. The lesson that stayed with me: a gas molecule has little economic value until an entire system enables it to reach productive demand.
Malaysia's First TPA Gas Shipper
A first-hand account of standing up PETRONAS Energy & Gas Trading (PEGT) as Malaysia's first licensed Gas Shipper — and what Third Party Access really means for competition in the gas market.
From Gas TPA to Electricity TPA: Understanding CRESS
Malaysia is extending the Third Party Access philosophy from gas pipelines to the national electricity grid through CRESS. Here is what that actually means when electricity, unlike gas, cannot be physically traced from one generator to one customer.
AQPS: The Quiet Innovation Inside Malaysia's Gas Framework Agreement
The Allocated Quantity to the Power Sector (AQPS) under Malaysia's Gas Framework Agreement solves a problem far bigger than gas nominations: how to manage demand uncertainty without eliminating commercial accountability.
Regasification and the New Complexity of Gas-to-Power
As Malaysia adds new LNG regasification terminals in Lumut and Yan, gas-to-power is shifting from domestic dominance to a more LNG-dependent future — and that shift demands system-level thinking, not just contract-level fixes.
Everybody Wants A Solution For Post-GFA
A friend asked for a proposal to fix the post-GFA gas-to-power puzzle. The honest answer: post-GFA is a system issue, not a single-party one, and it needs system design, not just contract design.
Third Party Access and the Discipline of Open Infrastructure
Third Party Access opened Malaysia's gas infrastructure to competition. But in the post-GFA era, open access without system discipline can turn a supply disruption into a system security issue.
Post-GFA: The Single Buyer and the Discipline of System Thinking
The Single Buyer may not be visible to the public, but as Malaysia enters a more LNG-exposed, more market-based post-GFA era, its role as the place where the whole system view is organised becomes even more strategic.
The Other Control Room Behind the Light
If PGCC watches the gas system, the Grid System Operator watches the power system. The trust between the two control rooms — solve the system problem first, settle the commercial details later — cannot be fully written into a contract.
The Pipeline Behind the Power Generation
Peninsular Gas Utilisation (PGU) is more than steel pipes on a map. It is the backbone connecting gas processing, power plants, petrochemical plants and industries — and why post-GFA cannot be discussed without talking about deliverability.
Power Plants Are No Longer Just About Megawatts
A question from Malaysia's first gas-fired power generation in Paka — which had to start first, the gas processing plant or the gas generator? — and why in the post-GFA era, a power plant is a fuel strategy, not just an engineering project.
Design the System, Not Just the Agreement
The question is no longer just who should supply gas to the power sector — it is how the entire gas-to-power system should be designed. Six design principles for a post-GFA framework that reflects how the ecosystem actually behaves.
Order Amidst Complexity: The Background Behind the GFA
Gas supply to the power sector sounds straightforward, but it is a highly connected system of commercial contracts, government policy, regulated pricing, dispatch and consumer affordability. This is the background that made the Gas Framework Agreement important.
Why I Write About Gas Supply: It Feels Personal
Most people never think about gas supply when the light comes on. A personal reflection on why the post-GFA discussion matters — not as an industry issue, but as the quiet confidence behind ordinary, everyday moments.
Consultation Paper on Gas Supply to the Power Sector Post-GFA
More than ten years ago, I was involved in negotiating the Gas Framework Agreement between PETRONAS and TNB. As the post-GFA consultation period closes, a reflection on what the next mechanism must get right — and how AI and agentic systems could help.