Kota Kinabalu: Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor said Sabah will build the 16th space launching facility in the world if a study shows positive indications.
The feasibility study is still in the early stages and would take six to 12 months and subject to further approval by the Sabah and Federal Cabinet.
“This will position Malaysia as the ninth country that has such a facility and further boost Sabah to be a leading state with potential in the context of transfer of knowledge and high-level aerospace technology in Malaysia,” he said.
The signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Friday night was held in conjunction with the Sabah Science Awards (MASS) 2023 at the Shangri-La Tanjung Aru Resort.
It was signed between three parties. The Sabah Ministry of Science, Sabah Technology and Innovation represented by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation, Datuk Zainudin Aman.
Sovereign Sengalang Sdn Bhd was represented by its Group Managing Director/Deputy Chairman, Mohd Ezra Effendi and Yuzhnoye State Design Office represented by Denys MyKhailiuk, (Charge d’ Affaires ad interim, Embassy of Ukraine).
“The MoU is timely to see the appropriateness of the construction of the Sabah International Space Launch Industry Centre at a location to be determined later.
“The construction will drive the growth of between 300 to 500 downstream companies in the aerospace industry such as construction, electronics and logistics.
“In addition, it opens more than 90 high-paying job opportunities and about 5,000 job opportunities in total as well as overflow and economic prosperity in Sabah,” Hajiji said.
He said Sabah’s position is very strategic and at the maximum straight linear velocity (Maximum Straight Linear Velocity) which can indirectly reduce the cost of launching space vehicles that would go straight to international space without going through Indonesian space.
“In addition, being able to boost the state’s achievements in the field of STIE (Science, Technology, Innovation and Economy), stimulate youth interest in the aerospace sector, the launch facility ‘Cyclone’, will be a new catalyst for the state’s tourism sector,” he said.
It would return an estimated 20 per cent of the revenue from each space vehicle launch estimated to reach RM200 million a year.
