BINTULU: Samalaju Industrial Port Sdn. Bhd. (SIPSB) recently received its first call from a vessel carrying rock phosphate at its Samalaju Port near here.
MV Amstel Tiger, the 200-metre-long ship from China, carried a load of about 28,713 tonnes. It berthed at the Handymax Terminal on Aug 24.
Rock phosphate is one of the main raw materials for the Malaysian Phosphate Additives Sarawak (MPAS) Sdn. Bhd plant which was commissioned in early August this year.
MPAS is a subsidiary of Cahya Mata Sarawak headed by its chief technical officer Mohamed Siraj Abdul Razack.
MPAS is the first such plant in the country and the only one in Sarawak that has complied with ESG requirements. There will be zero gas emissions from the plant.
The first phase of operation will consist of three plants with an annual capacity of 48,000 metric tonnes (MT) of yellow phosphorus; 75,000 MT of technical phosphoric acid; and 60,000 MT of food-grade phosphoric acid.
On hand to welcome the vessel from China recently were SIPSB and Samalaju Industrial Port Sdn Bhd chief operating officer Eizam Ismail, Malaysian Phosphate Additives (Sarawak) Sdn Bhd chief technical officer Mohamed Siraj Abdul Razack, Head of Samalaju Port Operation Lailatu’ lkadar Sitam, SIPSBs Top Management, MPAS Management as well as the agent, Shipflag Shipping Sdn. Bhd.
On behalf of Samalaju Port, Eizam congratulated MPAS on the successful commissioning of its plant and the first arrival of its raw materials.
“The start-up of MPAS plant in Samalaju Industrial Park (SIP) is another successful story for the state and the port itself. SIP is one of the state’s key industries and has a significant impact on how the economy is developed.”
SIP had developed rapidly, he said, adding, “I anticipate the park will keep expanding over the ensuing years”.
Given this scenario, he said the port was committed to achieving efficiency through its port services and would continue to collaborate with industry players to improve its performance.
