KOTA KINABALU: Sabah is banking on the proposed expansion of Sepanggar Port to take development in the State a level higher.
State Industrial Development Minister Datuk Raymond Tan said he was seeking RM300 to 400 million for the expansion over 600 acres under the 11th Malaysia Plan.
A bigger port would translate to more ships and greater movement of products in and out of the State which, in turn, would lead to economic growth, he said during the official opening of DKSH Malaysia Kota Kinabalu Distribution Centre at Kota Kinabalu Industrial Park (KKIP), Thursday.
“The port expansion comes under infrastructure development and that will basically cost more … I need the port to grow and KKIP will grow.
“The Federal Government has agreed, in principle, to our proposal. However, the allocation has not been received yet. It will take some time as this is part of the 11th Malaysia Plan,” he said.
According to him, this was part of their strategy to achieve Vision 2020 of being a developed nation.
“This is our last phase … it has a lot to do with the infrastructure and port expansion. You need that in order to allow the growth for business activity … so that’s important for us,” he said, adding that they needed to create a more vibrant economic environment in the city.
“We want more ships to come here that’s why Sepanggar Port is important. This means more containers will be coming into Kota Kinabalu and Sabah,” he said.
Besides, he also expressed concern on the logistic hub by looking at the numbers of incoming containers during peak hours.
“It’s not a small number and this is based on the shipping schedule … they needed to be discharged quickly to avoid high costs and we’re not even sure if the products were given the right treatment … so this is what we are looking at, at the moment,” he said.
Meanwhile, DKSH Malaysia Head Country Management Nicholas McLaren said with the solid infrastructure, strategic location and sound logistics services, the new distribution centre would strengthen DKSH’s unique and vast capillary distribution network in East Malaysia.
“We are well-positioned to leverage on Sabah’s promising market opportunities and growing demand for fast moving consumer goods, personal care, pharmaceuticals, medical devices and consumer health products.
“The new distribution centre will help us to better cater to our clients and customers, offering them the highest level of operational efficiency in logistics and distribution services, ensuring faster route-to-market and ultimately helping them grow their business in East Malaysia,” he said.
