Petron Malaysia today stressed that its appointment as a government fuel supplier underwent proper accreditation, saying that its relationship with Putrajaya stretches back to 2015.

"Like other oil companies and suppliers, we went through proper accreditation and followed all due diligence processes required by Finance Ministry.

"We first applied to be a government vendor in March 2015, and received approval from Finance Ministry on November the same year as an equipment supplier. 

"We reapplied specifically to be one of the fuel suppliers for government vehicles in October 2016. After an extensive process, we were only accredited as one of the fuel suppliers in August 2018," the oil company said in a statement.

Petron also thanked the government for its "trust and confidence," and noted their appreciation of "efforts to encourage healthier competition in the oil industry."

The oil company's appointment had caused controversy due to Mirzan Mahathir being a director in Philippines-based parent company Petron Corporation. He is the son of Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad

Petron had previously clarified that Mirzan has no involvement nor stake in its Malaysia chapter.

The Finance Ministry said the company was joining Petronas and Shell as fuel suppliers to the government to promote competition.

In the statement, Petron also underlined its commitment to serving the fuel needs of its consumers.

"We continue to make substantial investments in the downstream oil industry and contribute to the Malaysian economy by upgrading our refinery, strengthening our logistics capabilities, and expanding our retail network.

"We look forward to providing excellent service to the public for many years to come," he said.