Bahrain has expressed keen interest to tap into Petronas' knowledge and experience in the gas distribution sector, said Minister in the Prime Minister''s Department Datuk Seri Abdul Rahman Dahlan.

He said that the kingdom was also in the pursuit of expanding its economic relations and exploring economic potentials in this region, particularly with Malaysia.

"These include collaboration in the Islamic finance sector, with special focus to shape the structure and outline regulation standards to spur the growth of the Islamic finance industry for both Malaysia and Bahrain," he said in a statement following his meeting with Bahrain''s Minister of Oil Sh. Mohamed Ahmed Al-Khalifa here on Tuesday.

Abdul Rahman said Sh. Mohamed expressed his interest to meet Khazanah Nasional Bhd officials to identify new opportunities in the energy sector, including identifying opportunities for Malaysian investors in the kingdom''s new pipeline projects.

The minister also proposed to Sh. Mohamed to explore the potential of opening a financial institution in the upcoming Tun Razak Exchange.

"Bahrain too could play an integral part as a gateway hub for Malaysia''s small and medium enterprises (in order) to reach a bigger and wider market," he said. - BERNAMA