| Danial Norjidi |
FOREIGN direct investment (FDI) projects on barramundi fish farming, oyster farming and fish feed are among those in the pipeline for Brunei Darussalam, while a number of others are already in their operation and implementation stages.
Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office and Minister of Finance and Economy II Yang Berhormat Dato Seri Setia Dr Awang Haji Mohd Amin Liew bin Abdullah shared this during the afternoon session of the second day of the 15th Legislative Council meeting yesterday.
“To enhance the GDP growth of the non-oil and gas sector and to open up employment opportunities in the country, the government will continue to focus on efforts to intensify activities in identified sectors or priority sectors, namely the downstream oil and gas sector, food sector, tourism sector, and the info-communication technology (ICT) sector,” he said.
“These sectors are given priority in taking into account the existing competitive advantage and comparative advantages in terms of infrastructure, availability of natural resources and the economic environment, especially those that have shown the growth and have high potential to be developed more rapidly.
“Efforts have been carried out by the government, including providing industrial sites and so on. The government is also actively engaged in attracting quality FDI to accelerate the private sector development efforts in the country.”
The minister also noted the FDI projects that have been operating for import substitution, export and domestic consumption.
These are Yamako Pacific (Brunei) Sdn Bhd for yellow-fin and skipjack tuna, with the company successfully exporting 75 metric tonnes of fish to Japan and Malaysia; HLDS (B) Steel Sdn Bhd for the production of carbon steel pipes and casings, with 11,500 metric tonnes exported to Canada; Pure Fresh (B) Sdn Bhd for the processing of blue shrimp and seafood, with 21 metric tonnes exported to China; Polygel Organometallic (Brunei) Sdn Bhd, a specialised chemical processing plant for organic titanates, with 43 tonnes exported to India; and Saahtain (B) Sdn Bhd for the production of ready-to-eat meals, with 189 tonnes exported to Jordan, Lebanon, United Arab Emirates, Bangladesh, Kenya, Malaysia, Turkey, Oman and Saudi Arabia.
“As the FDI companies are still operating at an early stage, with the support of various agencies and the use of high technology, it is hoped they will be able to increase their respective exports in the coming years, Insya Allah,” the minister said.
He also shared developments in FDI projects that are currently under implementation, such as Hengyi Industries Sdn Bhd, which will start its operations at the end of the year, and Brunei Fertilizer Industries Sdn Bhd (BFI), an ammonia and urea production plant currently under construction and expected to commence operations in the first quarter of 2020.
The minister revealed a few other projects that are currently being planned, such as Barramundi Asia Sdn Bhd, which will be farming barramundi fish using offshore cage methods based on technology from Norway; Nanyang Mariculture for oyster farming; and Oceanus Group Limited for producing fish feed.
“FDI projects are under priority sectors which will help provide business opportunities for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in the country, such as contract farming/supply, services, business and logistics,” he said.