Brunei's Energy Industry

Brunei: a push for new discoveries

Brunei’s oil and gas sector has come a long way since the first commercial oil discovery in 1929. The production of hydrocarbons now accounts for around half of the nation’s GDP. The energy industry is overseen by the Petroleum Authority of Brunei Darussalam, which hands out PSCs and ensures participants adhere to policies set down by the state.

Brunei Shell Petroleum is the largest oil producer in the country, accounting for around 90% of oil and gas revenues. A 50:50 joint venture between super-major Shell and the government of Brunei, the integrated energy company BSP has been active in the country since 1929. The country’s key refining facility is the 175,000-bpd Hengyi complex.

New extracting technologies have made the country’s mature fields and deepwater ventures economically viable, and the state is focused on attracting new players into its oil and gas ecosystem. The country’s downstream sector has become equally vibrant with facilities producing LNG, methanol and other petrochemicals. The government has focused on building its petrochemicals capacity as it aims to up production and maximise on the economic potential of its remaining reserves.

Brunei’s decarbonisation agenda is increasingly shaped by its National Climate Change Policy, which sets 10 strategic pillars to 2035, including industrial emissions reduction, renewable energy deployment and power management. The country has also set targets to expand solar PV capacity and raise the share of renewables in its power generation mix, while assessing options such as carbon capture and storage and hydrogen to decarbonise hard-to-abate segments of the economy.