MIRI – National oil company Petronas has confirmed a leak along the Sarawak-Sabah interstate gas pipeline in Lawas in northern Sarawak.
The leak was caused by earth movements in the mountainous interior, and a safety shutdown is being enforced, Petronas said in a press statement.
“Petronas has declared Force Majeure (a situation where it cannot fulfil its gas delivery contractual commitment) due to a leak along the Sarawak-Sabah gas pipeline on September 21 that was caused by earth movements.
“This leak had impacted supply to the Malaysia Liquified Natural Gas 2 production facility in Bintulu.
“It also impacted the gas delivery commitment to some of our customers.
“We are identifying suitable mitigation measures and we are currently conducting a comprehensive evaluation of the pipeline to ensure safety and integrity,” said the statement.
The Vibes on October 7 reported sources disclosing that the leak had occurred at a section of the Sarawak-Sabah interstate gas pipeline located in the remote mountains of Lawas.
At the time, Petronas, owner of the pipeline, had not yet publicly revealed details of the incident.
The Vibes then learned from reliable sources that the section of the pipeline that suffered from the leak is located several kilometres from a native village called Pa’ Berunut. It is about three hours by road from Lawas town.
Ba’ Kelalan state assemblyman Baru Bian on social media had said that he knew of four such leaks to date.
He said fires and explosions had happened at the pipeline in Long Sukang on June 10, 2014, near SK Long Sukang on January 10, 2018, at Long Segaman on May 8, 2019, and at Long Kawah on January 12, 2020.
He even suggested that the giant pipeline which runs for some 600km from Kimanis in Sabah to Bintulu in Sarawak, should be shut down permanently. This is due to safety concerns as numerous populated settlements are located along the pipeline route. – The Vibes, October 9, 2022
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