KUALA LUMPUR (July 14): Malaysia is able to handle higher fuel costs for now, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said, reiterating that supplies remain sufficient amid renewed West Asia tensions.
While off earlier peaks, higher prices will affect Malaysia’s imports of oil, natural gas, and diesel, Anwar told the Dewan Rakyat on Tuesday. The real challenge, however, “is how to ensure that supplies remain under control even though fuel costs have increased,” he said.
Anwar pointed out that Russia has guaranteed long-term supply of diesel and oil to Malaysia, while Turkmenistan has granted national oil company Petroliam Nasional Bhd (PETRONAS) access to its gas fields with exploratory drilling set to begin in December this year.
Brent, the global benchmark for crude oil, rose to US$81 per barrel on Tuesday, after US President Donald Trump announced a blockade on Iranian vessels in the Strait of Hormuz while offering US protection for other ships passing through the critical waterway for a 20% fee.
The fragile truce has unravelled with the exchange of attacks and Iran has also struck vessels, as well as production facilities and pipelines of American allies in the Middle East.
Anwar was responding to Hulu Terengganu member of Parliament Datuk Rasol Wahid on the government’s assessment of the prolonged crisis in the Strait of Hormuz on the country’s political and economic stability, as well as measures to mitigate its impact.
Among others, Anwar highlighted that the government has continued to provide subsidies on petroleum products, which could hit RM40 billion for 2026.
The government spent RM800 million a month to subsidise RON95 and diesel for January and February before reaching RM5 billion per month for March and April, before easing to RM4 billion in May as oil prices retreated, he noted.
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