In a historic move, the government and opposition members of the Sarawak State Assembly last night approved a Private Member's Motion seeking to increase the oil and gas royalty the federal government pays the state from the current five percent to 20 percent.

Sarawak now receives RM1.6 billion a year from the five percent royalty. With another 15% increase in royalty, the state, which is the largest oil and gas producing state in the country, is expected to receive RM6.4 billion annually.