Petronas chief heads to Malaysia Airlines in state-sector shake-up

The president and CEO of Malaysia's state energy group Petroliam Nasional Berhad, or Petronas, has been appointed to serve as chairman of Malaysia Airlines, PM Muhyiddin Yassin said Saturday. Wan Zulkiflee Wan Ariffin will take the helm of the struggling airline. He will be replaced at Petronas by the company's chief financial officer, Muhammad Taufik Aziz, who will be promoted to president and CEO. Both appointments are effective July 1, said Muhyiddin. The management reshuffle comes as the two state-owned enterprises struggle with two of the biggest economic impacts of the coronavirus pandemic: an oil price crash and a plunge in air travel. "In a challenging economic environment, there are some state-owned companies that need to be strengthened to meet the world's new normal," the PM said. "The government will continue to re-look at the leadership in state-owned companies to ensure they are achieving the country's socio-economic objectives." Wan Zulkiflee led Petronas for five years and had his contract was renewed for three years in April 2018. An oil-and-gas veteran with 37 years of experience at Petronas, he is now tasked with turning around loss-making Malaysia Airlines, whose problems began before the pandemic. "I believe that under his [Wan Zulkiflee's] leadership, Malaysia Airlines will be restructured and continue to expand as a strong and sustainable national airline company with an excellent governance," Muhyiddin said.<br/>