KUCHING: The Sarawak government will use lessons learnt from other countries’ river management to overcome the challenges faced in the development of Miri Port located in the northern part of the state.
Premier Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg (pic) said the experiences of Rotterdam (Holland), Shanghai (China) and Adelaide (Australia) will be taken into account in the port expansion plan.
“We have seen what happened in other countries in the world… they actually originally got that (same congestion) problem,” he said after making a working visit to the port today.
According to him, the state government has approved an allocation of RM230 million to deepen the mouth of the Baram River, which serves as the riverine channel of Miri Port, as part of efforts to improve the port.
“In other words, this (Baram) river will be clear in time to come and transform Miri into another (development) hub besides Bintulu (port),” he said.
Following a RM2 billion investment by state-owned Petroleum Sarawak Bhd (Petros) to develop a 400-megawatt combined-cycle gas turbine plant to power Miri that he announced recently, Abang Johari said, the place will be turned into another gas hub in the Sarawak, besides Bintulu and Samalaju.
He said the investment will give a holistic development in providing access to affordable, reliable gas supply and clean energy under the Sarawak Gas Roadmap Master Plan, particularly in the northern region of Sarawak, as the gas pipeline will eventually connect Limbang and Lawas (Sarawak northernmost districts).
“In the next 10 years, we will also provide it in Kuching in order to provide energy to industries located in Sarawak,” he said, adding that Sarawak Energy Bhd, the state-owned power supply company, is working together with Petros on the development.
Meanwhile, he said the state is planning to build a port in Lawas as there is an investment proposal to build a petrochemical complex there and this plan will further increase the revenue for Miri Port. – Bernama