Malaysia’s Johor Port Authority (LPJ) is planning to turn ports in the state of Johor into a trade and logistics hub for halal products through a memorandum of understanding (MOU) entered into with Iskandar Halal Park (IHP).
The MOU signing, which took place October 30, will see an MYR250 million (US$60 million) integrated industrial halal park established in Pasir Gudang, an industrial town located in Johor Bahru District. This as both parties agreed to work together to ensure that the logistics environment in Johor, particularly in the IHP, is geared to promote the trade and movement of halal products.
The IHP is a joint venture development between the Johor state government and United Malayan Land Berhad with the objective to create a world-class integrated halal industrial park located within a 350-acre freehold industrial development site in Iskandar Malaysia.
The MOU is important as “the halal industry is a lucrative business with the world’s halal food segment estimated to be worth about US$2.6 trillion’’ by 2024, LPJ general manager Muhammad Razif Ahmad told a local press conference after the ceremony.
“I think this is what we will be doing together with Iskandar Halal Park so that when there are (halal) cargoes, we are ready in terms of logistics and supply chain. However, with this venture, it does not mean that we need to have a special port to handle the (halal) products. We will use existing facilities and services at the two ports (Johor Port and Port of Tanjung Pelepas),” he said.
VN port container traffic up
In other news, the volume of cargo passing through seaports across Vietnam rose by 19% to 431 million tonnes in the first 10 months of 2018, according to the Vietnam Maritime Administration (VMA).
The volume included 14.8 million TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) of containers, up 26% from the same period last year.
In October alone, seaports nationwide handled more than 43 million tonnes of cargo, up 20% year-on-year.
The biggest growth in freight volume was recorded at ports in the central province of Quang Nam (109.93%), followed by Ha Tinh (98.3%), and Nghe An (64%), said VMA deputy head Bui Thien Thu.
Meanwhile, several ports in Kien Giang and Nha Trang reported sharp declines in freight volume, ranging from 28% to 64% year-on-year, he noted.
Vietnam currently has 44 seaports with a total design capacity of 470 million to 500 million tonnes of cargo a year, reported Vietnam News Agency.
Photo: Chongkian
