Muhyiddin, Hajiji and International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali witnessing the signing of MoU between Sabah Industrial Development Minister Datuk Datuk Dr Joachim Gunsalam (left) and the chief executive officer of SK Nexlis Malaysia Sdn Bhd, Shin Dong Hwan (right).
KOTA KINABALU: Even though the State Government’s Sabah Maju Jaya (SMJ) halatuju has yet to be officially launched, three early high impact initiatives under the development guideline have kicked off.
On Monday, the Lok Kawi Resort City was launched and Memorandums of Understanding (MoU) for two investment initiatives between the state government and investors were signed.
The launching ceremony and MoU signing were officiated by Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.
Chief Minister Datuk Seri Panglima Hajiji Noor said the Lok Kawi Resort City is an initiative of the State Government’s Sabah Maju Jaya halatuju under the tourism sector cluster.
The development project is a collaboration between Sabah Foundation Group and Tegas Bangsa Sdn Bhd, he said, adding that the project is valued at about RM7 billion and will be built on the 411 acres of land in Lok Kawi Putatan owned by Sabah Foundation Group.
“Today’s event involves three high impact initiatives which represents the three main focus of the Sabah Maju Jaya halatuju namely, agriculture, industry and tourism clusters,” said Hajiji who is also Sabah Finance Minister.
Lok Kawi Resort City is an integrated development comprising hotels, commercial and office blocks, residential areas, a theme park and shopping malls among others.
Hajiji said Sabah Foundation Group’s involvement will continue through cooperation in the management of several of the developments in the project.
“Other than boosting the state’s tourism sector, the project is expected to provide more than 5,000 job opportunities and more when it is completed and fully operational, he said.
On the MoU signings, Hajiji said they involved a foreign and a local investor.
“These are under the industry cluster. The first MoU is between SK Nexilis Company Limited, a copper foil producer for electric vehicle (EV) battery manufacturer based in South Korea and Kota Kinabalu Industrial Park (KKIP).
The factory will be its first overseas production base, said Hajiji, adding that the investment is worth RM2.3 billion and is expected to offer 500 job opportunities in the early stages.
Construction of the factory is expected to commence this year and be operational by 2023. The investment is also expected to increase the usage of the Sepanggar Bay Container Port by 10,000 TEU (Twenty-foot Equivalent Unit) annually.
The second MoU was between domestic investor Linaco Group of Companies and the state government.
It involved the cultivation of high-yield hybrid coconut palms on a large scale and the setting up of an integrated processing plant to optimise the production of coconut-based products.
Linaco, Hajiji said, will also build an excellence centre to monitor the best practices of the project.
He added that the processing plant with be up and running as soon as possible, adding that the initial investment of the project is about RM200 million.
“The involvement of domestic and foreign investors will be part of the implementation of the SMJ halatuju. The state government’s machinery has been instructed to be more proactive in attracting and increasing investment into Sabah,” said Hajiji.
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