Speaking to reporters after his meeting with Turkmenistan President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov here, Abdullah said Petronas’ presence in the region was widely recognised.

He said the national oil company also provided scholarships and job opportunities to local people.

"The leaders in this region appreciate this and would be willing to have GLCs invest in their countries," the prime minister said, adding that he would speak to several of these companies on business opportunities in this region when he returned home.

Abdullah completed his visits to Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan where he witnessed the signing of several memorandums of understanding in the field of science and technology, higher education and the development of human capital. Abdullah said two areas where Malaysian companies had the expertise to help Uzbekistan were telecommunications and agro-based industries.

At a separate press conference later, Petronas president and chief executive officer Tan Sri Mohd Hassan Marican said the oil company has invested US$1.8 billion (RM6.5 billion) in Turkmenistan in the past 12 years and close to US$90 million in Uzbekistan in the last two years.

In the pipeline is a further investment of between US$150 million and US$200 million in the next three years.

Hassan said the company had given scholarships to 100 Turkmen students to study at the Universiti Teknologi Petronas in Tronoh, provided technical training for 180 students in this country and Malaysia, and job opportunities for 200 locals Turkmenistan.

He said Petronas Carigali (Turkmenistan) Sdn Bhd operated in the Caspian Sea and produced about 7,000 barrels of oil per day.

Petronas ventured into Turkmenistan’s oil and gas industry in 1996, with oil production beginning in May 2006.

The area has oil reserves of up to 146 million barrels and gas reserves of 6.4 trillion cubic feet.

Petronas has a contract for 32 years. The contract was signed in 1996.