Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Amin Uddin Harun (centre) and state industrialisation and non-Muslim affairs committee chairman Teo Kok Seong (second from right) at the groundbreaking ceremony for the SPD Tech Valley.
NEGRI Sembilan, on track towards attaining developed-state status and progressively moving towards a digital-centric economy, has outlined plans to attract more investments to further boost revenue and achieve its vision to become a prosperous, inclusive and sustainable state by 2045.
Taking advantage of its strategic location and proximity to the country’s main airports and seaports, the state administration plans to open more industrial areas especially the greentech and high technology industries to achieve this.
Negri Sembilan industrialisation and non-Muslim affairs committee chairman Teo Kok Seong said the state government has taken a proactive approach and hopes to open at least 10 new industrial areas in the state in stages in the coming years to meet this objective.
Aminuddin with Matrix Concepts chairman Datuk Mohamad Haslah Mohamad Amin (third from left) at the groundbreaking ceremony of MVV City. —FAIHAN GHANI/The Star
“As of now, we have more than 50 industrial areas in Negri Sembilan with proper infrastructure facilities.
“Of these, only the Techpark@Enstek phase 2 in Bandar Enstek and Springhill Industrial Park phase 1 and 2 in Port Dickson still have lots to be sold,” he said, adding that at the other industrial areas, there were only ready-built factories or godowns that were available for sale or rent to interested investors.
Realising that the state was quickly running out of industrial areas to cater to all types of industries, it came up with a plan to aggressively open more areas in the next four years to meet rising demand.
He said two industrial areas should start operating this year.
“The 514-acre Hamilton City Industrial Area in Nilai by Sime Darby Properties, which is the first project under the Malaysia Vision Valley 2.0 should be ready this year.
“The 100-acre Kelisa Mewah Industrial Area in Sg Gadut by Azza Mewah Sdn Bhd earmarked for light industries will also be ready for occupancy in the first quarter of this year,” he said.
Teo said the 523-acre SPD Techvalley Industrial Area in Senawang by Seri Pajam Development, being developed under the “greentech” concept in a guarded area, would be ready by 2026.
“This industrial area will be built under the Smart Sustainable Managed Industrial Park concept and is the first in South-East Asia to be awarded the Leadership in Energy and Environment Design for cities and the industry community.
“This area will also strictly comply with ESG standards,” he said.
Apart from SPD Techvalley, three more industrial areas will be opened in 2026.
The first is the 616.6-acre phase three of Techpark@Enstek at Bandar Enstek by Tabung Haji Properties.
“This particular area will focus on the halal industry hub, cleantech and high technology industries,” he said.
The next project, Teo said, is a 760-acre Vision Business Park integrated development (Parcel B) in Labu by Sime Darby Properties.
He said a section of the industrial area will be reserved to support light- and medium-scale industries.
The third, he said, was the 179-acre Springhill Industrial Area (phase 3) in Port Dickson by West Synergy Sdn Bhd which will focus on high-tech light- and medium-scale industries.
Two industrial areas that would be opened in 2027 are the 837-acre NS Semiconductor Valley in Senawang by NS Corporation.
“This investment, which will be in collaboration with the private sector, will focus on high technology industries such as electric and electronics and semiconductor,” he said.
Teo said 2027 will also see the opening of the 122-acre Sikamat Industrial Area in Sikamat by GD Holdings which will cater for the light- and medium-scale industries.
In 2028, the state will have two more industrial areas.
The first is the 2,382-acre MVV TechPark in Labu (Parcel B) by NS Corporation which will be built in collaboration with N9 Matrix Development.
“There will also be a NS Smart Park in Labu (Parcel B) by NS Corporation which is a joint venture with the private sector. The 1,281-acre area will house data centres, smart manufacturing facilities, aerospace, logistics and services industries,” he said.
On Dec 18 last year, the state government signed yet another agreement to develop an industrial park in Bukit Pelandok, Port Dickson.
The understanding between NS Corp, on behalf of the state government and SD Guthrie Bhd and Eco World Development Group Bhd will see the development of a 1,166-acre industrial park with a gross development value of RM2.95bil.
The project, to be developed over an eight-year period, will target both local and foreign investors and help create high-value jobs to further drive the state’s growth agenda.
The industrial park, will among others have industrial lots, ready-built factories and commercial properties that will cater to high-growth sectors such as aerospace, electrical and electronics, logistics and biotechnology.
Teo said the state government has also been attracting healthy investments in recent years which augurs well for its economic growth.
In 2018, the state received RM1.6bil in foreign direct investment (FDI) and another RM1.26bil in domestic direct investment (DDI). In 2019, the FDI increased to RM1.85bil while DDI saw a massive jump to RM5.1bil.
“The following year, the FDI increased further to RM3.8bil and the DDI was RM4.1bil. In 2021, we got RM3.35bil in DDI and RM2.4bil from foreign investments,” he said.
Teo said the state continued to attract investors in 2022 with foreigners pumping in RM6.58bil with another RM2.3bil from domestic investors.
History was made in 2023 when the total investments received went beyond the RM10bil mark. That year, another RM6bil came from abroad while domestic investors put in another RM4bil into the state.
For the first half of 2024, the state had already received investments totalling some RM3bil.
A proposal for the development of a special industrial cluster in the central region and the construction of a smart container port in Port Dickson will also expedite growth in Negri Sembilan and further solidify the country’s position as an investment hub.
The federal government has in principle agreed to the proposal which will include the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Negeri Sembilan and Melaka.
Through the initiative, they hope to attract more high-quality investments in the manufacturing sector in the central region.
The Negri Sembilan Digital Economy Blueprint, a five-year strategic plan aimed at developing a foundation for a digital-centric economy, will also be realised by 2027.
The core of the blueprint rests on the establishment of a digital-powered government, a digital-driven industry, and a digital-ready society.
Within the government, priority will be placed on digitalising-related services and kick-starting the journey towards transforming key Negri Sembilan areas into smart cities.
This blueprint aims to complement the vision of the Negri Sembilan Development Plan 2021-2025 and the Negri Sembilan Structural Plan 2045 towards becoming a prosperous and sustainable state.
