Category FAQs Search : Oil and gas industries
Question: What is the history of oil and gas in Sarawak?
Answer: Miri is the second-largest city in Sarawak and has been recognised as home of the Malaysian oil and gas industry for well over a century. Oil was first struck on 10 October 1910 and Canada Hill, where the first well was located overlooking the small settlement at the time, was reportedly named in honour of a certain Mr. McAlpine, a Canadian employee of the Anglo-Saxon Petroleum Company who was the field manager in charge of the drilling.
It is also speculated that the hill’s name was attributed to the team of Canadian drillers working in the local oil industry in the early days of Miri. Either way, the name stuck and that is how this prominent limestone ridge and famous Miri landmark obtained its name.
Petrolia and Oil Springs are towns in southwestern Ontario, Canada. Both are part of Lambton County and surrounded by Enniskillen Township. Petrolia is popularly billed as ‘Canada’s Victorian Oil Town’ and is often accredited with starting the oil industry in North America, a claim shared with the nearby town of Oil Springs.
It was also from the towns of Petrolia and Oil Springs that the Canadians who explored for oil in Miri are believed to have originated from.
(Source: Official website of Curtin University - written by Terry Justin Dit , 02 May 2025)