KL to build large port

KL to build large port

KUALA LUMPUR (AFP): A Taiwanese company has announced plans to
build a large port in southern Malaysia's Malacca state, in what
local officials said yesterday could be a major boost to the
state's industrial fortunes.

The one billion ringgit (US$400 million) port proposed by the
Orna Group at Malacca city is likely to be built as a joint
venture, the officials said, adding that it would largely serve
the ambitious expansion plans of the area's steel industry.

"If this goes through, it'll be the first Malaysian port set
up by a foreign company and could do a lot of good for Malacca's
industries," local foreign investment official Ng Peng Hee told
AFP by telephone from the state, some 160 kilometers (100 miles)
from Kuala Lumpur.

Ng said executives of Malacca-based Ornasteel Corp. were
expected to seek approval for the port from Prime Minister
Mahathir Mohamad today, when the premier is to open the firm's
new plant in the state.