Score attracts RM28 billion of investments

KUCHING: The Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy (Score) has attracted 14 mega projects worth RM28.55 billion from 2009 to August this year.

Sarawak Industrial Development Minister Datuk Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hasan said the projects were predominantly in the energy intensive industries such as aluminium smelting plants, polycrystalline silicon, metalic silicon and ferro alloy projects.

"Eleven of these projects are at the Samalaju Industrial Park, of which four companies, namely Press Metal Bintulu Sdn. Bhd, Tokuyama Corporation Japan, Asia Mineral Ltd. (Hong Kong) and OM holdings Ltd. (Singapore) have commenced construction works," he said at the winding-up speech for his ministry at the State Assembly sitting Monday.

Two more companies, one biotech and the other agro-based, have commenced operations at Tanjung Manis Halal Hub while the aluminium smelting plant in Mukah has been in operation since 2009.

"These particular Score projects are expected to generate more than 10,000 job opportunities besides creating vast business opportunities through the spin-off effects," said Awang Tengah.

Score is one of the five regional economic corridors being developed in in the country.

Among the energy-intensive industries to be set up under Score are aluminium, glass, steel and oil-based plants as well as marine engineering.

Located within the central part of Sarawak, the area stretches 320 kilometres along the coast from Tanjung Manis to Similajau, extending into the surrounding areas and the hinterland.

The core of the corridor will be harnessing energy resources, particularly hydropower (28,000 megawatts), coal (1.46 billion tonnes), and natural gas (40.9 trillion square cubic feet) found abundantly within the region.

Overall, Awang Tengah said, Sarawak was leading in the highest proposed capital investment in the country based on the statistics from January to August this year by the Malaysian Investment Development Authority.

"Sarawak leads the total investments with proposed value of RM7.3 billion, Johor second with RM6.0 billion and Selangor third with RM5.9 billion," he said.

Of the total RM7.3 billion investment so far this year, RM4.2 billion or 57.5 per cent came from domestic direct investments while RM3.1 billion or 42.5 per cent from foreign direct iInvestments.

These investments comprising 60 projects are expected to generate 5,293 employment opportunities.

The major source of FDI was the United Arab Emirates with an investment of RM2.2 billion in chemical products (polysilicon) while the rest was from Hong Kong with RM280 million mainly in metallic silicon and Japan with RM158 million in basic metal (manganese).

Source: MOLE