KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 7): National oil and gas company Petroliam Nasional Bhd, or Petronas, said on Tuesday it is embarking on a study to explore untapped resources in the Malay Basin off the coast of Peninsular Malaysia.

Recent exploration activities have uncovered significant new discoveries at the super basin that has produced over nine billion barrels of oil since the 1970s, Petronas said in a statement. Beyond hydrocarbons, the basin presents substantial opportunities for carbon capture and storage, it said.

“The Malay Basin, often regarded as mature, still holds significant untapped potential, as demonstrated by discoveries such as Bunga Aster and Bekok Deep,” said Azmir Zamri, a senior general manager of resource exploration at Petronas' Malaysia Petroleum Management unit.

Petronas said it is partnering Beicip Franlab Asia for the study that will leverage advanced 4D modelling and machine learning technologies to analyse the subsurface architecture at both basin and reservoir scales.

The focus is also on predicting hydrocarbon migration and entrapment by harnessing big data from the Malay Basin, the company said.

“Through our collaboration with Beicip Franlab Asia on the integrated basin study and our AI-enabled geophysical initiatives with Earth Science Analytics, we aim to redefine what is possible and unlock new opportunities in this prolific region,” Azmir added.