TotalEnergies SE announced at Energy Asia 2025 in Kuala Lumpur the purchase of stakes held by Petroliam Nasional Berhad (PETRONAS) in several deep-water Malaysian blocks as well as in one Indonesian permit, TotalEnergies stated in a release issued on 16 June. The licences span more than 100,000 km² and are at different stages of maturation. The transaction value was not disclosed and remains subject to customary regulatory approvals. It extends the French producer’s footprint in South-East Asia, with Malaysia as the central platform.
Discovery details and production schedule
Alongside subsidiary Petronas Carigali Sdn Bhd, TotalEnergies will hold a 50 % operated interest in blocks SK301b and SK313 off the state of Sarawak. The two permits have already yielded more than four trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of gas, earmarked to supply the Malaysia Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) complex from 2030. The group is also acquiring minority interests in several Malaysian exploration licences, where drilling campaigns are set to accelerate next year. According to the release, these assets show “high commercial potential” to bolster regional LNG supply.
Low-cost gas growth path
This deal follows the SapuraOMV Upstream takeover completed in December 2024, which had already made Malaysia a strategic foothold for the French major. “We see in this country a key platform for low-cost, low-carbon growth underpinned by Asian LNG demand,” said Patrick Pouyanné, chairman and chief executive officer, according to the same statement. The executive added that the long-standing cooperation with PETRONAS provides “a diversified portfolio ranging from exploration to production.”
Global framework agreement between the two groups
Alongside the acquisition, TotalEnergies and PETRONAS signed a strategic cooperation agreement to deepen their partnership in upstream oil and gas worldwide. The document, initialled by Patrick Pouyanné and Tan Sri Tengku Muhammad Taufik, president and group chief executive officer of PETRONAS, aims to “develop barrels with strong commercial potential,” the Malaysian company noted. The two groups already collaborate in several countries, including Brazil and Mozambique, and plan to pool technical expertise to lower development costs.
Malaysia accounted for nearly one trillion cubic feet of gas production in 2023, according to PETRONAS statistics. Adding blocks SK301b and SK313 could raise the future export capacity of the Malaysia LNG complex, one of the world’s largest liquefaction hubs. “We are fully aligned on delivering sustainable value for all stakeholders,” Tan Sri Tengku Taufik said after the signing.
