BPHB dishes out major package of the RM2bil Samalaju Port project

by **Cals** Mon 14 Oct 2013, 09:49

Published: Monday October 14, 2013 MYT 12:00:00 AM
Updated: Monday October 14, 2013 MYT 7:07:10 AM
BPHB dishes out major package of the RM2bil Samalaju Port project
BY JACK WONG

KUCHING: Bintulu Port Holdings Bhd (BPHB) has dished out a major package of the RM2bil Samalaju Port project for bidding of contractors.
The wharf package, the biggest of the several packages, will involve the construction of five wharves to cater for handymax and handysize bulk carriers.
“Tender for the wharf package closes next month,” Samalaju Industrial Port Sdn Bhd (SIPSB) head of operations Mat Salleh Mohd Etli told StarBiz.
SIPSB is a wholly-owned subsidiary of BPHB.
He said the four handymax wharves to be constructed could handle vessels up to 50,000 deadweight tonnes (DWT). Three of the wharves are 210m in length while the fourth, 250m.
The sole handysize wharf is 230m long and will cater for vessels up to 20,000 DWT.
“The five wharves are expected to be completed in 2016. By then, Samalaju Port will increase its cargo handling capacity to 18 million tonnes per annum,” he added.
The new deepsea port is designed to serve particularly energy-intensive industries like aluminium and manganese smelters in Samalaju Industrial Park within Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy.
Mat Salleh said the port’s interim facilities, comprising two wharves and a roll-on roll-off ramp, were capable of handling up to four million tonnes of cargo per annum when operational in three months.
One of the wharves is scheduled to be completed next month and the second in December. Both are of length 160m.
He said these two wharves would cater for two or three barges at one time, and could also serve vessels with draught up to 7m.