Thursday, August 14, 2008

NEWS:RM5 BLN GOV'T ALLOCATION TO KICK OFF SCORE IN SARAWAK

BINTULU, Feb 11 2008 (Bernama) -- Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi Monday announced a RM5 billion allocation for high impact projects that have been identified under the Ninth Malaysia Plan (9MP) for the development of the Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Enery (SCORE).

The corridor will be developed in the central region of the state, encompassing 70,700 sq km in the Bintulu, Kapit, Sibu, Mukah and Sarikei divisions, making up 57 percent of Sarawak's land mass and the largest of the corridor developments in the country.

"So far, the central region's potential had not been developed due, among others, to its scarce population. With development coming in now, there will be huge economic and social impact," he said when launching SCORE at the Bintulu Promenade here.

"The spillover benefits from the region's development will be seen in other parts of Sarawak as well."

At the event, the Prime Minister witnessed the signing of 13 memorandums of understanding (MOUs) between the Sarawak government and companies which will participate in the corridor's development.

Among them was a pact involving the state government, Sarawak Energy Bhd, Cahaya Mata Sarawak Bhd and Rio Tinto Aluminium Ltd for the supply of energy of between 900mw and 1,200mw for an aluminium smelter in Similajau with an investment value of RM5.25 billion.

According to the SCORE masterplan, the Sarawak Corridor should see investments amounting to RM334 billion, with the federal government accounting for 15 percent of it, from now until 2030.

Abdullah said that to catalyse this development, three growth centres have been identified - Tanjung Manis, Similajau and Mukah.

Tanjung Manis, a port whose hinterland is resource-rich, will become a manufacturing and small industries centre, and he said: "By 2030 we hope it will become an important regional port city."

Similajau will be an industrial city underpinning a new industrial centre, housing heavy industries such as oil & gas, aluminium, steel and silica, with a deepwater port also to be built there.

Mukah will be an education hub and "Smart City," drawing not only academic and research institutions but also skills training centres.

"As high as the hornbill soars, juat as high are the hopes of the Sarawak people on the success of this Corridor, and they are ready to accept development to improve their quality of life," he said.

The Prime Minister said that with the full implementation of the Score masterplan by 2030, Sarawak will see its gross domestic product (GDP) growing five-fold - from RM23 billion now to RM118 billion, with annual GDP growth pace lifting to seven percent from the current five percent.

In this period, 1.6 million high-value job opportunities will be created throughout Sarawak, about half of them in industries emerging in SCORE, he added.

By 2010, according to Abdullah, hardcore poverty in Sarawak will be wiped out while poverty will eclipse to less than one percent by 2030 from 7.5 percent of the population now.

Abdullah said he has directed that a "green development framework" study be undertaken to ensure that SCORE's development is environmentally friendly.

"This is to ensure that our energy resources will be developed in a sustainable and environmentally sound manner," he stressed.

Energy resources, especially hydro power of 20,000mw, coal deposits of 1.46 billiion metric tonnes and natural gas deposits of 40.9 trillion cu ft, are readily available in the SCORE region.

Recoda, the Regional Corridor Development Authority, has been set up as a one-stop agency to facilitate all investment activities in SCORE as well as drive the development of the central region and the whole state towards fully developed status by 2020.

This is the fifth development corridor that Abdullah has launched to ensure balanced development throughout the country. The others are the Iskandar Development Region in the southern tip of the peninsula, the Northern Corridor Economic Region, the East Coast Economic Region and the Sabah Development Corridor.

Source :
http://www.pmo.gov.my/website/webdbase.nsf/SummaryBI/544A8C838C59DCFD482573EC002754A3

NEW:PELANCARAN KORIDOR TENAGA BOLEH DIPERBAHARUI SARAWAK (SCORE) DI BINTULU WATERFRONT PROMINADE


BINTULU, 11 Feb 2008 -- Perdana Menteri Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi (tiga kanan) bersama Ketua Menteri Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud (kanan) menekan butang simbolik pelancaran Koridor Tenaga Boleh Diperbaharui Sarawak (Score) di Bintulu Waterfront Prominade di sini, hari ini.
Memerhatikan, Menteri Kemajuan Luar Bandar dan Wilayah (KKLW) Datuk Seri Abdul Aziz Shamsuddin (kiri) dan Timbalan Ketua Menteri Sarawak Tan Sri George Chan Hong Nam (dua kiri).
Score adalah koridor pembangunan kelima dilancarkan Perdana Menteri selepas Wilayah Pembangunan Iskandar di Johor, Wilayah Ekonomi Koridor Utara, Wilayah Ekonomi Pantai Timur dan Koridor Pembangunan Sabah.
Score terletak di wilayah tengah Sarawak merentasi kawasan sepanjang 320 kilometer dan meliputi kawasan seluas 70,000 kilometer persegi dengan kepadatan penduduk 607,800 orang.
Sumber : fotoBERNAMA

source : http://www.pmo.gov.my/website%5Cwebdbase.nsf/hv_BeritaGambar/1A4BBC3333279EFB482573EC0026F585