Malaysia – Petrol Prices Drop

August 25, 2008

The government has reduced the price of petrol in Malaysia (actually, they reduced it on Saturday, 23rd August, 2008 but I’m a slooow reporter).

The price of RON 97 was lowered to RM2.55 from RM2.70, while RON 92 dropped down 22 sen to RM2.40 a liter. Hey, which petrol station sells RON 92, I missed that.

Diesel will cost 8 sen less at RM2.50 a litre.

Those of you following Malaysian politics will be pleased to note that the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said that “we did this for the entire country and not just for the folks in Permatang Pauh.”

I would like to highlight what a spokesperson from the Consumers Association of Penang (CAP) said at another occasion. She asked whether goods and service providers, who used the petrol price hike to raise prices would now lower their prices.

Wanna bet they don’t?

Note that all this doesn’t effect the price of oil used by oil companies to derive economics to develop hydrocarbon assets. Also, I think it’s a shame that we have not provided more efficient public transport before the price drop was made.

On another note, Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said “… If the people do not appreciate the (fuel) rebates, it is better for us not to give rebates in the future.”

2 Comments | Malaysia, oil and gas | Permalink
Posted by Wata

Audible Alarm Signals

August 23, 2008

I just realised that the Menara ExxonMobil lifts had audible signals indicating whether the carriage is heading up or down. It gives a single tone for a carriage going up or two tones going down. I think my office block has the same audible setup as well, but I haven’t noticed that.

Oil and gas sites have audible (and visual) alarms that indicate potentially how serious a situation is. The alarm levels I’m used to are:

  • Process alarm – potential process upset.
  • Assembly alarm – platform personnel are required to assemble at the safe haven.
  • Abandon platform – leave the platform, now.

I’m well trained. Upon hearing the assembly alarm, I go from sound sleep to heading out of the living quarters without engaging my brain :).

Leave a Comment » | Malaysia, oil and gas | Tagged: | Permalink
Posted by Wata

Pirates hijack MISC tanker

August 22, 2008

Quoting from the Star:

PETALING JAYA:The whereabouts of 29 Malaysians and 10 Filipinos on an MISC Bhd tankers remains unknown since the vessel was hijacked by heavily-armed pirates in the Gulf of Aden on Tuesday.

MISC, the world’s largest single owner and operator of liquefied natural gas tankers, confirmed that its 32,025 dead-weight-tonne chemical tanker Bunga Melati Dua which carried palm oil was hijacked by pirates at 10.09pm local time off the coast of Somalia.

Bernama has this to say:

PUTRAJAYA, Aug 21 (Bernama) — Wisma Putra will utilise all diplomatic channels and work closely with countries in the Gulf of Aden region to amicably end the hijacking of Malaysian tanker MT Bunga Melati by heavily-armed pirates on Tuesday.

Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim said Wisma Putra would continue to monitor the situation and developments through the Malaysian High Commission in Kenya and the Malaysian Embassy in Yemen.

He said this was to coordinate the peaceful recovery of the vessel and the safe return of all crew members on board.

“The tanker owner, Malaysian International Shipping Corporation (MISC), has communicated to all family members of the crew that it would continue to keep them updated on a timely basis,” Rais said in a press release Thursday.

PETRONAS has 62% ownership of MISC.

5 Comments | Malaysia, oil and gas | Tagged: , | Permalink
Posted by Wata

Malaysia Wimax – Price List

August 21, 2008

I had a previous article mentioning that Wimax is here in Malaysia. Now for the numbers that matter to your wallet:

Assuming you want a Personal account:

  • P1 W1MAX 1200 (1.2 Mbps): RM99 (12 month contract) or RM89 (24 month)
  • P1 W1MAX 2400 (2.4 Mbps): RM229 (12 month contract) or RM199 (24 month)
  • Nationwide Access: RM10 (waived, but think about it, what nationwide access?)
  • and they have 400 kbps and 700 kbps packages at their website.

Charges:

  • Modem: RM999  (waived, cool!)
  • Registration: RM100
  • Activation: RM10
  • Stamp duty: RM10
  • Installation fee: RM80 (optional, I don’t know whether it’s worth taking up or not)

To reiterate my previous comment:

My opinion? This roll out is on the bleeding edge. Only apply if you want to be the first on the block to have it. Me, wait till TM comes up with Wimax, then you have national pride on the line. In the meantime, use unlimited 3G.

 The company providing the service is P1.

4 Comments | Malaysia | Tagged: , | Permalink
Posted by Wata

Malaysia – Tank Fire at Tanjung Langsat

August 20, 2008

Ah, we welcome Malaysia as a statistic for tank fires. To quote from the Star:

18th August: TANJUNG LANGSAT: A 16,000-tonne gasoline tank belonging to oil trader Trafigura Pte Ltd caught fire at the Tanjung Langsat Port here yesterday, causing an inferno that could be seen kilometres away.

No one was reported to be injured.

At least 70 fire and rescue personnel in 11 fire engines from the Johor Baru, Johor Jaya, Pasir Gudang, and Kulai stations were trying to douse the flames at 10pm.

Fire and Rescue Department assistant director-general (operations) Amer Yusuf said the cause of the fire was not known and that there were eight other tanks nearby.

The operation was led by Johor Fire and Rescue Department deputy director Shukur Sani Hashim and assisted by the Pasir Gudang Emergency Mutual Aid Group (Pagema).

And the situation got worse today, says the Star and Bernama, which has be quoted below:

The fire which broke out Sunday at one of the eight oil storage tanks at the Tanjung Langsat Port oil depot has spread to another tank.

The incident happened as work was going on to pump out 11,200 cubic metres of Naptha from the tank by personnel from the Fire and Rescue Unit, Pasir Gudang Emergency Mutual Aid and the Pasir Gudang Municipal Council.

Tanjung Langsat Port Sdn Bhd director Lukman Abu Bakar confirmed the incident but did not say when the second tank caught fire.

“The fire spread to the second tank and we are controlling the blaze,” he said.

The fire broke out at about 6.30 pm Sunday at the first tank which had 16,000 cubic metres of gasoline.

And apparently they ran out of fire fighting materials, which allowed the fire to spread. Now, if you were in charge of the fire fighting inventory in the oil and gas industry, you would be out on a sling before the last flames had died down.

Could this be a case of risk analysis gone wrong?

1 Comment | Malaysia, oil and gas | Tagged: , , | Permalink
Posted by Wata

Wimax in Malaysia (KL at least)

August 13, 2008

Wimax is on a trial basis in KL. You can get more info here. The company providing the service is P1, and the service is call P1 W1MAX. Someone told me the Internet is making bad spellers, and I would tend to agree 🙂

My opinion? This roll out is on the bleeding edge. Only apply if you want to be the first on the block to have it. Me, wait till TM comes up with Wimax, then you have national pride on the line. In the meantime, use unlimited 3G.

11 Comments | business opportunity, Malaysia | Tagged: , | Permalink
Posted by Wata

Carigali’s Original Offices

August 12, 2008

How many of you recognise these premises as being the building that first housed PCSB?

Leave a Comment » | Malaysia, oil and gas | Tagged: | Permalink
Posted by Wata

Saturday Star 08-08-09 – Job Opportunities

August 11, 2008

Another week, another scan of the Saturday Star newspaper. Here’s a list of job ads in the paper:

  • DPS Bristol (M) Sdn Bhd and DPS Consultant Malaysia Sdn Bhd are looking for a lot of engineers. Examples are Project Eng (6 pax), Lead Process Eng (10 pax!), Lead Mech/Pipe (10 pax)… I wish my company was expanding that fast. Anyhow, closing date is 15th August, 2008. You can fax your resume to +603 9206 2626 or email it in.
  • MISC are looking for a few engineers. 
  • MMHE is looking for engineers. They have a walk in interview at Hotel Grand Continental Kuantan, 16th and 17th August, between 8.30 to 6.00 pm. Visit their site under Career Opportunities, or email your resume in.
  • Schlumbergeris looking for a geoscientist / reservoir engineer. Email your resume in before 20th August.
  • Newfield are looking for a Geologist / Geophysicist / Completions Engineer / Offshore Installation, Projects Engineer / Onshore Construction, Project Engineer. Email your resume in before 23rd August.
  • Nippon Oil is looking for a whole mess of people. I guess they want to staff up a project management team (PMC) for new developments. Engineering positions available: contract, facility, senior production, senior reservoir, DCS & instr, senior opns, senior process, senior maintenance, mech. Snail mail before 31st August, 2008 to Human Resources Section, Nippon Oil Exploration (Malaysia), Ltd, Lot 1168, 3rd Floor, Wisma Interhill, Miri Waterfront Commercial Centre, 98000 Miri, Sarawak. Hey, this is almost exactly the advert that went out 08-04-26. If I were you, I would ask for more money as they didn’t get the people they wanted 4 months ago.
  • Oryxin Kuwait has a position for Head of Production, Utilities & Hydrogen Production and Product Workup Units. Another GTL opportunity. They are a JV between the ever loved Qatar Petroleum and Sasol of South Africa.
  • Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (Sabic) is looking for a process, instrument / control system, safety engineers and polypropylene operators. There is  a walk in interview on the 16th to 19th August, 2009. (tempting, tempting) at the JW Marriot, between 0900 to 1700. You can apply via email here.

Happy hunting. Let me have some feedback if you find this list useful. Even better, spread the news. PayPal donations welcome.

Leave a Comment » | engineering, Malaysia, oil and gas | Tagged: , , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Wata

Oil Spill in Miri

August 9, 2008

To quote from the Star:

Thursday August 7, 2008 MYT 4:58:51 PM Leak along pipeline causes oil spill off Miri

By STEPHEN THEN

MIRI: Petronas Carigali has suspended decommissioning works on a network of disused pipelines offshore Miri in northern Sarawak after detecting leakage along a 13km pipeline that lays between an oil platform in the South China Sea and the inshore Miri Crude Oil Terminal.

The company’s contractor and staff from the Department of Environment are now in the midst of an operation to contain the spill and to clean up the oil sleeks that had washed ashore, causing pollution to a stretch of beach along an exclusive housing estate occupied by oil and gas industry expatriates in Lutong town, some 20km north of the city here.

DOE Miri chief Dayang Norbani on Thursday confirmed that the leakage has been contained and that 90% of the spill had been recovered. “We are now in the midst of trying to recover the other 10%. Petronas’ contractors are also cleaning up the beaches to ensure that the pollutants are removed.

“We are still trying to determine how the leak occurred and how much of the shoreline has been affected,” she said when contacted.

To a question, she said the DOE is still trying to find out if any populated riverine villages were affected by the oil pollutants.

Dozens of workers from the oil company had been deployed at various points along the affected zones to ensure that the oil sleeks do not get washed back to the sea.

PETRONAS on Thursday issued a statement saying that “about 15 barrels of oil” trapped in the pipeline had leaked into the South China Sea, and the leakage was spotted at 7.40pm on Tuesday.

The company said that air surveillance had been carried out and it was found that there were no additional signs of leakage.

“The company had deployed divers to detect the exact location of the leakage on the pipeline for repair works to be done,” said the statement.

The pipeline was installed in 1984. A new pipeline was installed last year.

The decommissioning works on the old pipeline started on Monday and was supposed to go on for three weeks.

Leave a Comment » | engineering, Malaysia, oil and gas | Permalink
Posted by Wata

Saturday Star 08-08-02 – Job Opportunities

August 4, 2008

Another week, another scan of the Saturday Star newspaper. Here’s a list of job ads in the paper:

  • DPS Bristol (M) Sdn Bhd and DPS Consultant Malaysia Sdn Bhd are looking for a lot of engineers. Examples are Project Eng (6 pax), Lead Process Eng (10 pax!), Lead Mech/Pipe (10 pax)… I wish my company was expanding that fast. Anyhow, closing date is 15th August, 2008, You can fax your resume to +603 9206 2626 or email it in.
  • RasGas is looking for engineers. Snr Integrity, Snr Mech, Snr Programmatic, Snr Elect/Power, Measurement Specialist (Way hay!), Snr Rot Eqt, Snr. I&Control, Analyser Eng Specialist. CVs to be submitted here. I believe RasGas is a JV, one of the partners being ExxonMobil. Hmm, I notice that the local headhunting house is no longer AP Recruitment, but is now Marsya Technology Sdn. Bhd.
  • Qatargas is looking for operators, interviews scheduled for mid-Sept, 2008. You can inquire and apply via email here. They do have positions for Controls Eng, Facilities/Process Eng, Metering Eng (Way hay again!)
  • Murphy Oil is looking for a subsea installation engineer. CVs to be submitted here.
  • Qatar Airways is recruiting for female cabin crew. Turn up at Renaissance Hotel, 9th August 2008, 9 am sharp. Thought I’d throw that in for you engineers out there.

IGL Process Solutions is looking for high paying work, preferably of a 6 month duration.

I put in a free advert for my favourite chicken rice place, Chee Meng. Go, people, go! I’m waiting for their loyalty card to come out. If you want to meet me, I’m usually there most Wed lunches. BTW, anyone been to the nasi kandar in the Sungai Wang rooftop foodcourt lately? Is it still there?

Happy hunting. Let me have some feedback if you find this list useful. Even better, spread the news. PayPal donations welcome.

Leave a Comment » | engineering, Malaysia, oil and gas | Tagged: , , , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Wata

« Previous Entries
Next Entries »