Sarawak has selected Norway-based Hoegh Evi to develop what will be the Malaysian state's first-ever LNG import terminal, according to a report carried by Baird Maritime.

The arrangement marks a notable shift for a jurisdiction better known for LNG exports than imports. Sarawak hosts Malaysia's flagship Bintulu LNG complex, the production backbone of the country's liquefaction business, and the state's upstream gas supply has underpinned Petronas's position among the world's largest LNG suppliers. The decision to bring in floating regasification specialist Hoegh Evi signals that Sarawak's planners now see a need for imported gas to balance demand within the state itself.

Hoegh Evi — the floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) arm formerly known as Hoegh LNG — has built its business on exactly this niche: chartering floating terminals that let markets receive LNG without the cost and lead time of shore-based regasification infrastructure. The company has deployed FSRUs across Europe, Asia and the Americas, and its selection here indicates Sarawak has opted for the floating route rather than a conventional onshore import terminal for its debut regasification project.

No capacity figures, charter terms or target startup dates accompanied the announcement as reported. The structure of the deal — whether Hoegh Evi will supply a newbuild FSRU, redeploy a unit from its existing fleet, or take an equity role in the terminal — also remains to be confirmed by the parties.

The move fits a broader pattern across Southeast Asia, where gas-consuming states are adding import capacity even as domestic production plateaus or declines. Floating terminals have become the default answer in the region because they can be delivered in a fraction of the time required for onshore facilities and can be scaled to modest initial throughput. Sarawak's case is unusual in one respect: it is an exporting province adding import infrastructure, which points to local demand growth — most plausibly from power generation and industrial users — outpacing the gas volumes allocated to the domestic market from existing upstream supply.

For Hoegh Evi, a Malaysian contract would extend a franchise that has gathered momentum since Europe's post-2022 scramble for regasification capacity. The company has positioned itself as a fast-delivery provider of LNG import infrastructure, and an Asian state-level customer adds geographic diversity to a order book that had leaned heavily toward the Atlantic basin.

The watch items from here are concrete. First, the terminal's location and size: the siting decision within Sarawak will determine which demand centres the imported gas can serve. Second, the counterparty structure — whether Petronas, the Sarawak state government's energy entities, or both take the offtake and terminal-operator roles. Third, the schedule: an FSRU-based project can move from selection to first gas in roughly two years if the hull and mooring work proceed on standard timelines, but any newbuild slot would push delivery well beyond that. Confirmation of the capacity figure will also frame how significant the import volumes are against Sarawak's overall gas balance.

Until Hoegh Evi or the Sarawak authorities publish the commercial detail, the project sits in the sanctioned-in-principle category rather than the execution queue. The industry will be watching for the formal agreements that convert the selection into a contracted terminal with a delivery date.