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    14 September 2012| last updated at 01:37AM

    New projects to further boost national income

    By KAMARUL YUNUS | news@nst.com.my

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    SECOND PROGRESS UPDATE: RM5.61 billion investment to create tens of thousands of jobs, says prime minister

    PUTRAJAYA: SEVEN more entry point projects (EPPs) worth RM5.61 billion were unveiled yesterday to further boost Malaysia’s gross national income by RM2.36 billion with 18,522 new jobs.

    This brings the total number of EPPs to 28, valued at RM26.07 billion and creating more than 50,000 new jobs by 2020.

    The projects are in the healthcare, oil, gas and energy, palm oil and rubber, electronics and electrical, and business services.

    Providing the second progress update for the country’s Economic Transformation Programme (ETP), Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said the investments were in line with the focus areas, which were high-technology, green and alternative technologies and knowledge-intensive industries.

    “These investments fit into our focus areas. The government remains focused on creating conditions that are investor-friendly to enable businesses to thrive. Since the ETP was launched two years ago, most of the projects that have been announced are already under way.”

    The biggest investment announced yesterday was in the oil and gas National Key Economic Areas (NKEAs).

    A consortium, comprising Dialog Group Bhd, the Johor government and Royal Vopak, will invest RM4.08 billion to develop the Pengerang Liquefied Natural Gas Terminal Project — an LNG storage, loading and re-gasification terminal to import LNG for trading purposes and for domestic use.

    In healthcare, Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd, India’s largest pharmaceutical company in a joint venture with local partners, is investing RM125 million to set up a second manufacturing plant in Malaysia, which will become one of Ranbaxy’s eight global manufacturing hubs for the export of generic drugs.

    Also under healthcare, Medical Devices Corp Sdn Bhd will spend RM88.55 million to build a contract manufacturing hub for DEHP free medical PVC granules, medical tubings and sheet.

    In electrical and electronics, National Instruments Malaysia will invest RM270 million to set up two National Instruments Academy and Innovation Nucleus.

    The first one will be at Technology Park Malaysia by the third quarter of next year, while the second one in Iskandar Malaysia is expected to be completed by March 2015.

    In business services, the 1Progres consortium plans to invest RM947 million in waste recovery alternative solutions, while under the palm oil and rubber NKEA, United Plantations Bhd and Oleon Sdn Bhd will invest RM96.33 million to build a 25,000 million tonnes per year oleo-derivatives production facility at the Selangor Halal Hub.

    Malaysia is also investing RM4.7 million in three clinical trials seeking medical breakthroughs by using tocotrienols in palm oil.

    Meanwhile, Minister in the Prime Miniser's Department Datuk Seri Idris Jala said the next progress update was scheduled in November and subsequently, January.

    "These projects will create RM6.96 billion in GNI," said Idris, who is also Performance Management and Delivery Unit (Pemandu_ chief executive officer.

     

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