Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas) and the Philippine National Oil Co (PNOC) signed a three-year memorandum of understanding (MOU) today to introduce natural gas-powered vehicle, the Enviro 2000, to the Philippines.

"Under the MOU, Petronas and PNOC will pool their resources and expertise to embark on a six-month field demonstration in Manila involving six units of the Enviro," Petronas said in a statement.

Petronas said the MOU would also allow the joint promotion of natural gas for vehicles in the Philippines.

The agreement with PNOC would pave the way for the use of natural gas in other businesses like natural gas-fired vehicles and refueling stations, and factory production of bi-fuel and mono-fuel gas vehicles in the Philippines, it said.

Petronas would be represented by its subsidiary Petronas NGV Sdn Bhd (PNGV).

At the MOU signing ceremony, Petronas was represented by Muri Muhammad, chairman of PNGV while PNOC was represented by its president Thelmo Y Cunanan.