Gov't to provide subsidy if oil prices soar - Mahathir

Saudi Arabia’s move to temporarily suspend production at the state-owned Aramco’s two major oil facilities following the drone attacks by Yemeni rebels will definitely impact the global oil prices, according to Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

However, he said, in Malaysia, the government practices intervention through a subsidy to offset the price hikes.

“If Saudi Arabia had to stop refined oil production by one million barrels (per day), it will definitely impact the global oil prices.

“In Malaysia, when there is an oil price hike, we will give a subsidy. Unlike in the United Kingdom, if the price of oil soars, the government will raise the tax and the people don’t complain,” he told a press conference after watching the Putrajaya Boat Race 2019 today.

The prime minister said this when asked whether the government would review the retail price of RON95 petrol, which currently stood at RM2.08, if the global oil prices soar following the attacks.

Saudi Arabian energy minister Prince Abdulaziz Salman was quoted by Saudi state news agency SPA on Sunday as saying that the attacks on Abqaiq and Khurais, two key Aramco facilities in eastern Saudi Arabia, have partially halted crude and gas production from the world's top oil exporter.

In a separate statement, Aramco said the attacks “had resulted in production suspension of 5.7 million barrels of crude oil per day”.

The drone attacks on Abqaiq and Khurais were the latest incidents of terrorist aggression on Saudi oil facilities in recent months.

The Iran-linked Huthi rebels said they launched “a large-scale operation involving 10 drones” on the facilities, the group’s Al-Masirah television reported.

- Bernama