MALAYSIA’S PENANG – A REGIONAL POWERHOUSE IN THE MAKING – ATTRACTING JEALOUSY & FEAR FROM THE COUNTRY’S OWN PREDOMINANT POPULATION? PLAN TO BUILD ARTIFICIAL ISLAND EXCITES HIGH-END INDUSTRIES – YET OBJECTIONS GROW

PENANG is targeting “high-mix low-volume smart manufacturers” for one of the three artificial islands under the Penang South Reclamation (PSR) project, said Invest Penang director Lee Kah Choon.

Only one of the three islands is proposed for industrial use.

“No particular industry is being targeted but it will be more high-end as the land cost will be higher,” he told The Malaysian Insight when asked on the type of industry that Penang is looking to attract to set up base there.

“All decisions on investments for the island will be made solely on business viability alone.” 

The state investment arm has never stopped promotional efforts to attract investments, he said.

“The promotional efforts have never stopped but where to locate the investor will be decided entirely on business consideration,” said Lee, who is also the director of Penang Development Corp.

In a recent interview with The Malaysian Insight, Deputy International Trade and Industry Minister Ong Kian Ming said the electrical and electronics sector is one of the main industries targeted for the island.

He added that the massive land reclamation project is necessary to address the issue of industrial land scarcity in the Silicon Valley of the East.

The south of Penang island where three islands will be reclaimed as part of the Penang South Reclamation project. – The Malaysian Insight file pic, August 12, 2019.

Two of Penang’s major industrial parks – the Bayan Lepas Free Trade Zone and Prai Industrial Estate – have been operating for decades.

With land in Bayan Lepas depleted, a third area, the Batu Kawan Industrial Park, is growing rapidly.

Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow recently said there is about 1,160ha in Batu Kawan.

However, he added that discussions are ongoing with investors to develop the majority of the land.

These parks are home to companies such as AMD, Agilent Technologies, Intel Technology, Renesas Electronics, Bosch and Osram.

Penang proposes to create three islands measuring a total of 1,821ha off the southern coast of Penang island through massive land reclamation.

The reclaimed land will be sold to fund the Penang Transport Master Plan, a RM46 billion infrastructure project aimed at easing traffic congestion on the island with an undersea tunnel linked to the mainland, highways, a light rail transit system and monorail.

– https://www.themalaysianinsight.com