KUALA LUMPUR (June 26): Petroleum Sarawak Bhd (Petros) said it is unaware of an alleged attempt to leak confidential PETRONAS information to the Sarawak state-owned oil company.
“Petros is not in any way privy to the alleged attempted disclosure of information,” Petros said in a statement on Friday.
“We urge members of the public and the media to exercise due care and avoid publishing or disseminating any defamatory statements or imputations about PETROS or its officers arising from this matter,” it added.
Petros’ statement was in response to testimony given during the trial of former PETRONAS business performance unit manager Mohd Khairul Akmal Jasni, who is accused of attempting to leak a confidential document on June 8, 2024 to two senior Petros officers.
Former PETRONAS senior manager for industrial relations Jumsuri Basri, the prosecution’s first witness, told the Sessions Court that Khairul Akmal sent a confidential document titled ‘Q1 2024 Upstream Business Performance’ to two senior officers of Petros.
Jumsuri testified that PETRONAS' cybersecurity department had verified that Khairul Akmal sent the document to Petros after an earlier attempt failed because the file was too large.
Petros said it is aware of the media reports of the court proceedings and noted that it respects the legal process and will not interfere with proceedings.
“The company will take all necessary steps to safeguard its employees and interests,” it added.
The purported revelation in Khairul Akmal’s trial comes amid a prolonged tussle between PETRONAS and Petros over the oversight of oil and gas assets in Sarawak.
The matter is now in the Federal Court.