Local reports cited Malaysian Transport Minister Liow Tiong Lai as saying that the new additions were Kemaman Port, Sabah Ports Authority and Kuching Port Authority, as well as China’s Tianjin Port and Qingdao Port.
“We will have a more comprehensive collaboration because we now have ports in the peninsula, Sabah and Sarawak in the alliance with Chinese ports,” he said.The port alliance, aimed at promoting technology and knowledge transfer from bigger China ports to the local ports, was forged in November 2015 during Chinese Premier Li Keqiang’s official visit to Malaysia.
The cooperation agreement encompasses port technology, container processing and speeding up processes by reducing red tape.Liow said that with Malaysia aspiring to be the logistics hub for Southeast Asia, it needed to improve its infrastructure to increase its cargo-handling capacity.
Expansion at key ports such as Port Klang is already taking place in anticipation of future demand and Malaysia is building its networks to boost connectivity from southern Thailand and Sumatra.
On the current market, Liow said that although transshipment volumes have dipped slightly, local production and exports have increased.Amid the alliance realignments and industry changes, some lines have switched to Singapore and other regional ports but local growth remains strong growth as there is high output, he said, adding that "this is a good sign'.
Copyright © 2024. All rights reserved. Seatrade, a trading name of Informa Markets (UK) Limited. Add Seatrade Maritime News to your Google News feed.
