Sarawak Economy to Grow by 500% by 2030

KUCHING, Sarawak, Malaysia, January 25, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Sarawak's economy will grow more than 500% in the next 20 years by 2030, as more business opportunities in manufacturing, construction and services are taken up by investors in the Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy (SCORE). As a result, jobs will more than double from 949,100 in 2009 to 2.5 million by 2030.

SCORE is one of the five regional development corridors throughout Malaysia and will transform Sarawak into a developed state by the year 2020. It aims to accelerate the state's economic growth, as well as improve the quality of life for the people of Sarawak.

Overseas interest is key to the development of SCORE with investment now totalling about US$30 billion in the aluminium, the polysilicon, and minerals-based industries as well as agriculture including aquaculture and the halal hub. In addition Chinese investors have recently pledged US$11 billion and Arab investors US$7 billion in the energy and aluminium clusters.

Focusing on five major growth nodes, Tanjung Manis, Samalaju, Mukah, Baram and Tunoh, SCORE singles out 10 key industries for development. These are tourism, oil, aluminium, metals, glass, fishing, aquaculture, livestock, forestry, ship building and palm oil. Investors are being drawn to the region because it is rich in energy resources, with an energy potential of 28,000 MW of which 20,000 MW are in hydropower and 5,000 MW in coal-fired plants and the remaining 3,000 MW in other energy sources including biofuel. This allows Sarawak to price its energy competitively and encourage investments in power generation and energy-intensive industries that will stimulate strong industrial development in the corridor.

SCORE is developing a vast area that stretches 320 kilometres along Sarawak's coast from Tanjung Manis to Samalaju and extends all the way into the extensive and remote hinterlands where two rural growth nodes, Baram and Tunoh, will also be developed. Furthermore, in order to connect urban centres across thecentral region with the rest of Sarawak, new roads will be created to provide more efficient transport of goods, access to resources and human capital.

Sarawak's industrial sector is currently undergoing a transformation and the opportunities for investment are immense. Value-added industries are taking an increasingly dominant role in the development of the state and the days when Sarawak exported raw materials that were finished elsewhere are long over, with the new clusters set to put "Made in Sarawak" stamps on more goods and services in the years to come.

Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud said:

"SCORE represents one of the most important steps we are undertaking in collaboration with the Federal Government regarding Sarawak's future. SCORE is positioning Sarawak as a major economic player on the world scene, particularly in the fields of heavy industry and energy."

SOURCE Asia Newswire