Bintulu Port handover to be finalised in June

KUCHING: The handover of Bintulu Port from the Federal Government to Sarawak will be finalised in June this year.

In a joint statement, the federal Transport Ministry and state Infrastructure and Port Development Ministry said this was decided in a federal-state joint committee meeting on Monday (Jan 8).

Sarawak Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah and Transport Minister Anthony Loke jointly chaired the meeting.

In line with this, the Transport Ministry will table a Bill in Parliament to repeal the Bintulu Port Authority Act 1981.

"To ensure that the port's operations will not be affected or disrupted by the change of status, the Sarawak government will establish the Bintulu Port Authority (Sarawak) under the Sarawak Port Authorities Ordinance, 1961," the statement said.

It added that a memorandum of understanding will be signed next month on the handover of the port to the state government.

Bintulu Port, the country's main port for liquefied natural gas (LNG), is currently a federal port under the Transport Ministry's purview.

Negotiations have been ongoing between the Federal and Sarawak governments after the state expressed interest in taking over the port last year.

Sarawak wants Bintulu Port to be part of a cluster of state ports under a Central Port Authority for streamlined management, operations and development.