Press Metal may consider expansion of smelting operations in Sarawak

MUKAH: Press Metal Berhad may consider expanding its smelting operations in the state if the state government's plan to construct more hydro electricity dams materialises.Chief executive officer Datuk Paul Koon Poh Keong told the media here that this was because the industry was basically a heavy consumer of power.

The state government is mulling building dams in the Kapit and Miri divisions simultaneously from next year. It has now the 2,400MW Bakun and 944MW Murum dams.

Koon said Sarawak was blessed to have a lot of hydro dam potential.

"It is going to be power rich. Should we proceed with our expansion plan, Bintulu will be an ideal place.

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"This is because the government is building a new sea port in Samalaju which allows us to save on transportation and logistic costs," he added.

Press Metal has invested about RM3 billion in its Mukah and Bintulu plants.

The Mukah plant is capable of producing 120,000 tonnes and Bintulu about 320,000 tonnes annually.

The joint production of 400,000 tonnes is the biggest in South East Asia with an annual export value estimated at US$1 billion.

Koon said the industry was going to be a very important one for Malaysia due to increasing usage of aluminium products in the automobile, construction, packaging and transportation industries globally.

"Aluminium appeals greatly to the world which is getting more environmentally conscious. It is also highly recyclable and does not lose its property in the process, unlike plastic," he added.

Koon said Malaysia, through the two smelting plants, was now a global name in the industry and also due to the fine quality of billet and ingot exports.

Meanwhile, commenting on the power failure in June last year which badly hit the Mukah plant, he said after a four-month shut down, it regained full production early this month.

"The shut down easily cost us RM100 million in losses. We have also regained the confidence of our investors and buyers," he added.

"We have had many meetings to address the problem, while identifying possible emergency and mitigation measures, over such an incident happening again," he said. - Bernama

Koon said power failure was a common happening the world over.

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"But it should not be allowed to prolong as it can be catastrophic for an industry like ours," he added.

He said efforts were also being vigorously pursued to localise the industry by hiring more local experts and trained workers as the plants are expected to run for the next 30 to 50 years. - Bernama

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