ARMOURED VEHICLE PLANT TO BE BUILT IN LIPIS - MB

KUANTAN, May 9 (Bernama) -- An armoured vehicle plant will be built in the Padang Tengku Industrial Estate (Phase II) to further boost the development of the Lipis district as a defence city thus stimulating the economic growth of the local population as well as job opportunities.

Pahang Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Wan Rosdy Wan Ismail said the company, MILDEF International Sdn Bhd, is in negotiations to finalise the investment and is expected to start investing when the Ketech Asia Sdn Bhd’s phase one investment in the ammunition plant is fully operational, expected in the last quarter of this year.

He said the armoured vehicle plant site had been approved by the Pahang State Secretary Incorporated (PSK) while the project implementing agency was under the purview of the Pahang State Development Corporation (PKNP).

“In line with the approval of the ammunition and armoured vehicle projects, all forms of investment related to defence will be proposed to be implemented in the Padang Tengku Industrial Estate (Phase II).

“Indirectly, it can increase wages and service contracts through job opportunities that will be offered to locals,” he said in the state assembly sitting at Wisma Sri Pahang today.

He said this in his reply to a question from Datuk Mustapa Long (BN - Padang Tengku) who wanted to know the level of progress in the implementation of Lipis as a defence city and the positive impact on the local population.

When answering a supplementary question from Mustapa who wanted to know the government's steps in ensuring that the armoured vehicle plant remains built and the water supply that is often affected in the area, Wan Rosdy said PKNP and PSK always follow up with the relevant parties.

“It's quite hard to go somewhere else as we already have an ammunition plant. As there is an ammunition plant, it will go together with an armoured vehicle (plant) and PKNP (the main agency of the armoured vehicle project) as well as a one-stop agency for investors who will facilitate the company throughout the negotiation process.

“The negotiation process by holding discussions with the state's technical agencies to ensure that the company complies with the state’s development requirements and related to water supply; I understand negotiation with PAIP (Pengurusan Air Pahang Berhad) has been carried out to ensure that there are no problems once the factory is built on site,” he said.

Commenting on the RM150 million ammunition plant, the first in the country to be developed on PKNP land leased to the company with an area of 40 hectares, he said it had reached 82 per cent completion as of March 15.

“Basic approval was obtained from the Home Ministry on March 4, 2022, to obtain a licence to manufacture ammunition under Section 12 of the Arms Act 1960 (Act 206) in Kuala Lipis starting from Jan 1, 2022, until Dec 31, 2024.

“The opening of the plant is expected to open up 150 new job opportunities,” he said.

Meanwhile, state Investment, Industries, Science, Technology and Innovation Committee chairman Datuk Mohamad Nizar Najib said within 10 years, from 2013, PSK had signed 235 sale/lease agreements and 22 memoranda of understanding (MoUs) covering foreign direct investment (FDI) projects and domestic direct investment (DDI).

“Of the total MoUs, four of them have been realised through sale/lease agreements which have contributed RM534.2 million to the state government,” he said.

He said this when answering a question from Chan Chun Kuang (PH-Semambu) who wanted to know the memorandum which had been signed between the state government and foreign or local investors within a period of 10 years.

-- BERNAMA