A diorama showing a person conducting a study to discover the iron ore content in the soil, on display at Muzium Bukit Besi. — Photos: FARID WAHAB/The Star
BUKIT Besi was once a bustling iron ore mining town in Terengganu, before its sharp decline in 1971 when the British company in charge of the operation uprooted its business.
Today, the town in Dungun district is a shell of its former glory and remains just a reminder of the economic height it once reached.
According to local lore, a group of native people came across unusually heavy rocks in the wilderness there.
Kuhara is credited with identifying the iron ore at Bukit Besi in early 1910s. — Photo courtesy of Muzium Bukit Besi.Word reached M. Kuhara, a Japanese geologist, who led an expedition into the hill in 1916 to study the area.
He found iron ore inside the rocks and later started a mining operation and set up Kuhara Mining Ltd.
In 1929, the company, renamed Nippon Mining Company, obtained a 50-year mining lease from the Terengganu government.
The area flourished into a mining powerhouse, which at its height, employed some 3,000 workers comprising both locals and migrants.
The social makeup was transformed, with over 6,000 residents, some of whom originated from overseas, settling in Bukit Besi.
The series of events is chronicled at Muzium Bukit Besi, owned and managed by Central Terengganu Development Authority (Ketengah), an agency under the Rural and Regional Development Ministry in charge of socioeconomic developments in central Terengganu.
Opened on Oct 15, 2021, the museum is part of the agency’s efforts to promote Bukit Besi as a tourist destination and preserve its history.
Apart from Dungun, Ketengah oversees two other districts – Kemaman and Hulu Terengganu – covering some 443,000ha in total.
Injection of modernity
Museum assistant Muhammad Alif Syazwan Zalani said the boom in iron ore mining activities brought infrastructure development to Bukit Besi.
To transport the iron ore, the Japanese built a 32km railway line, comprising 11 stations, linking the area to Dungun port.
After the Japanese Occupation in Malaya ended in 1942, the British administrators sold the mine to Eastern Mining Metal Company (EMMCO).
The company built schools and cinemas as well as established a fire department, among other public facilities in the area.
It also provided electricity and treated water for free to encourage more people to settle and work there.
The front compound of Muzium Bukit Besi has a replica of a plane used to transport supplies to Bukit Besi during the Japanese Occupation.
Muhammad Alif said these developments, coupled with the income from working at the mine, significantly improved the quality of life for locals.
“On average, a miner could expect to be paid RM7 per day, which was considered high at the time,” he added.
The British also brought modern equipment to optimise production, capable of reaching 2,000 tonnes a year.
At one point, the mining operation in Bukit Besi contributed to one-third of Terengganu’s gross domestic product.
However, issues arose when in 1970, the Terengganu government began to impose higher taxes and the workers’ union demanded better pay.
EMMCO eventually ceased its Bukit Besi operation and relocated to Australia after it discovered a bigger iron ore mine there.
Iron-clad legacy
With the departure of EMMCO began the decline of Bukit Besi as an economic and mining powerhouse, said Muhammad Alif.
He said many structures built during the mining era, scattered throughout Dungun, were eventually abandoned and fell into disrepair.
Among them was the “Rumah Nombor 1” residence which used to house the mine manager and visiting dignitaries.
Remnants of the structure are sited at the top of a small hill at the museum and can only be viewed from behind a glass window.
Other abandoned structures were the train stations and the Opal building, which was used as a temporary storage for the iron ore.
The Opal building is sited a few hundred metres from the museum and is open to visitors every day.
In its heyday, the trains carried iron ore and workers between Bukit Besi and Dungun port, which took over two hours one-way.
“Unfortunately, the railway line is gone. Made of high-quality wood, the rail sleepers were stolen or damaged after the mining activities stopped,” said Muhammad Alif.
Another legacy structure is the train tunnel at Bukit Tebuk in Kampung Nibong, which has been repurposed into a road.
In January 2022, the 143m tunnel received a facelift, thanks to a RM200,000 allocation from Tourism, Arts and Culture Ministry.
Photos published in Malay dailies showed potted plants placed near the entrance, as well as a big signboard above it carrying the tunnel’s name.
Dungun Municipal Council, in a statement on its website, said the tunnel was beautified with hope of turning it into a new tourist attraction in Terengganu.
However, a recent check by StarMetro found signs of vandalism and parts of the entrance covered with overgrowth.
A local resident, who wished to be known only as Abdul Aziz, expressed dismay at the state of the tunnel.
“Lots of money was spent on beautifying it. It will be wasted if there is no proper maintenance,” he said.
Calls for preservation
Museum general assistant Januar Musa said a handful of mining operations was still taking place in Bukit Besi, albeit at a smaller scale.
On July 24, 2022, Ketengah chairman Datuk Seri Ahmad Said announced plans to form a subsidiary company to manage the mining operations.
The Opal building is sited a few hundred metres from the museum.
Ahmad, who was a former Terengganu mentri besar, said this would give Ketengah direct stake in the activities and generate more revenue.
“The mining operations are handled by concessionaires and on average, Ketengah receives only RM27mil a year in revenue.
“The concessionaires extracted 400 tonnes of iron ore annually and made RM300mil in revenue,” he was quoted as saying.
Many locals, however, have in recent years called on the authorities to limit mining activities due to concerns about the impact on historical structures.
Persatuan Sejarah Malaysia Dungun honorary secretary Wan Mohd Rosli Wan Ngah proposed that the legacy structures be given heritage status.
Visitor Abd Raman Salleh (left) taking a photo of a painting depicting iron ore being transported at Dungun port. Looking on is Muhammad Alif.
He said this would afford them more protection against the mining activities and minimise potential damage.
“There are also underground operations and tunnels built underneath these historical structures that may cause damage,” he added.
In media reports, Wan Mohd Rosli also warned that excessive mining might increase the risk of flooding.
Terengganu Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar, in September 2022, reportedly ordered an investigation by state agencies into these claims.
Rejuvenation efforts
While its glory days are long past, efforts have been made to revive Bukit Besi as a tourist spot in Terengganu.
In 2015, the state government launched the Bukit Besi Historical City 2030 Special Zone Draft Plan, aimed at rejuvenating the area.
The document, among others, outlined plans to redevelop the disused mines into a tourist attraction and preserve local history.
Januar showing some of the rocks that contained iron ore found in Bukit Besi.
Tasik Puteri, a 131ha lake in the larger Taman Rekreasi Tasik Puteri landscape, is one such example.
The area was turned into an ecotourism spot by Ketengah, and comprised, among others, a picnic area, children’s playground and golf club.
The UiTM Bukit Besi campus, opened in 2013 and sited next to the lake, was an effort to inject socioeconomic elements into the area.
To arrest the socioeconomic decline after the mine closure, Ketengah in 1976 established the Durian Mas township 15km from Bukit Besi.
Various infrastructure such as schools, housing and mosque were also developed to attract more people to settle there.
In 1983, Durian Mas was renamed Bandar Al Muktafi Billah Shah, in honour of then Terengganu Ruler Sultan Mahmud Al-Muktafi Billah Shah who visited the area.
Ketengah later in 1989 relocated its headquarters from Kuala Terengganu to the town.
The Bukit Tebuk tunnel in Kampung Nibong, Dungun, was repurposed for daily use by motorists.
Another factor contributing to Bukit Besi’s development was the completion of the Jerangau-Jabor Highway in 1979.
The 179.6km highway, which links Kuala Terengganu with Kuantan in Pahang, passes through Bukit Besi and Bandar Al Muktafi Billah Shah.
Muzium Bukit Besi opens daily, except on public holidays, from 9am to 4.30pm. On Fridays, it closes temporarily from 12.30pm to 2.30pm.
Entrance fee is RM5 for adults, RM3 for children aged seven to 12 and senior citizens, RM2 for schoolchildren in school uniform while foreigners are charged RM10.
Entry is free for children under six years old and the disabled.
