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Silicon Island can be expedited, says Chow
The chief minister says the number of ships bringing sand into the site will be doubled, cutting down construction time to eight to 10 years instead of the original 15.
Penang chief minister Chow Kon Yeow (fifth from left) and governor Ahmad Fuzi Abdul Razak (fourth from left) with executive councillors at the Silicon Island reclamation site.
GEORGE TOWN: The development of the Silicon Island project, south of Penang island, can be expedited, chief minister Chow Kon Yeow said.
The project duration can be shortened by doubling the number of ships used to ferry and pour sand onto the reclamation site from two currently, Chow said. They now pour 7,000 cubic metres of sand a day at the site.
“By next year, the capacity will be increased to 20,000 cubic metres. We are targeting 400 acres to be reclaimed in a year,” he said at a press conference today, adding that it would likely take eight to 10 years to create the 2,300-acre island instead of the original 15 years.
He said the reclamation has yet to take into account the island’s infrastructure, including a temporary bridge for construction traffic from Penang International Airport.
The construction will be carried out in stages, with the first phase to be the Green Tech Park industrial area, due for completion by 2026.
Earlier, Chow said the development is expected to generate RM1.1 trillion to the nation’s gross domestic product as well as RM74.7 billion in investments, creating 220,000 jobs.
The project was downsized from three islands covering the entire southern coastline to a single island following intervention by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.
It has gone ahead despite legal challenges to the conditional approval given to the environmental impact assessment report prepared for the project on April 11.
The local fishing community and several environmental groups have been opposing the island project because they claimed it would harm the marine ecosystem of the southern coastline of Penang island, as well as impact their livelihood.
GEORGE TOWN: The development of the Silicon Island project, south of Penang island, can be expedited, chief minister Chow Kon Yeow said.
The project duration can be shortened by doubling the number of ships used to ferry and pour sand onto the reclamation site from two currently, Chow said. They now pour 7,000 cubic metres of sand a day at the site.
“By next year, the capacity will be increased to 20,000 cubic metres. We are targeting 400 acres to be reclaimed in a year,” he said at a press conference today, adding that it would likely take eight to 10 years to create the 2,300-acre island instead of the original 15 years.
He said the reclamation has yet to take into account the island’s infrastructure, including a temporary bridge for construction traffic from Penang International Airport.
The construction will be carried out in stages, with the first phase to be the Green Tech Park industrial area, due for completion by 2026.
Earlier, Chow said the development is expected to generate RM1.1 trillion to the nation’s gross domestic product as well as RM74.7 billion in investments, creating 220,000 jobs.
The project was downsized from three islands covering the entire southern coastline to a single island following intervention by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.
It has gone ahead despite legal challenges to the conditional approval given to the environmental impact assessment report prepared for the project on April 11.
The local fishing community and several environmental groups have been opposing the island project because they claimed it would harm the marine ecosystem of the southern coastline of Penang island, as well as impact their livelihood.
Big mistake
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