By Danial Dzulkifly
SHAH ALAM, Feb 28 — The planned development of the Pulau Carey port is a national initiative to ensure Port Klang remains competitive with other regional ports, said Menteri Besar Dato’ Seri Amirudin Shari.
It is crucial to meet the shipping supply chain’s growing demands while positioning the country and state as a preferred destination for future investment.
He added that the Pulau Carey port development, which will serve as the third port in Port Klang alongside Northport and Westport, aims to match the scale of the port system in Singapore.
The Sungai Tua state assemblyman said that while Westport is undergoing an expansion of their container terminals 10 to 17 to improve the port operator’s growth prospects, this would be insufficient.
“Until now, the Transport Ministry (MOT) and the Port Klang Authority (PKA) have always conducted evaluations. The extension of Westport alone does not suffice because, in their view, we will need a large port area with its own network from Pulau Carey to Northport in the future.
“The port area in Selangor will span an area comparable to a country like Singapore. With such a large size, we can offer much better services and ensure we remain premium in port services.
“Otherwise, in any country that seeks to grow or compete with us, we will only become feeders. This was mentioned by the MOT’s Chief Secretary himself during our briefing when presented by PKA and the state government.
“So, this is a mission not only for Selangor but also, I believe, for Malaysia as a whole,” he said in response to an additional question posed by Gombak Setia assemblymen Muhammad Hilman Idham on the development of the Pulau Carey port during the Selangor State Legislative Assembly today.
Amirudin also said the port’s development has been a Federal government aspiration since feasibility studies were conducted in 2014, with its construction deemed crucial to compete with regional nations aggressively engaging in land reclamation projects to build deep-sea ports.
“Because of this, we also need companies (keen to develop the Pulau Carey port) with regional networking either with China, the Gulf, or Europe.
“These companies should have the experience and networking to attract these investments or the movement of goods sent through the port,” he said.
Meanwhile, in response to an additional question by Bukit Gasing assemblyman Rajiv Risyakaran on logistic networking connecting to all three ports, Amirudin said the state government will be looking at two main routes for rail connectivity.
“The options include to extend the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) from Westport to Pulau Carey because it is within close proximity.
“The second option is to maintain the existing alignment, which we have not changed and will continue to maintain, and then to extend southwards from Seremban to Pulau Carey,” he said.
The state administration also received several proposals for highway development in the area, improving several facilities, including in Sijangkang, where the entry roads are narrow with inadequate or low existing facilities.
Amirudin said the Selangor government would also address issues concerning the indigenous settlements, like the Mah Meri community, to ensure better road access for Pulau Carey.
