The Malacca Emperor Jinggang project, which attracted international attention 10 years ago, almost ended a few years ago.The Malaysian government approved the project to restart at the end of last year, but the scale has been significantly reduced from the largest port of the original area to the construction of only international cruise ships.They are put on hold.
"The Emperor Jinggang project has been cold. Before, they said that they were a very large project, and they stopped working. It has been several years now. If you ask Malacca people, everyone will feel deserted."
Huang Jinxi operates a grocery store on Pulau Melaka outside the shore of Malacca City, which is adjacent to Huangjing Port 1 Island. It originally planned for development, entertainment, fashion and retail.
However, as the MELAKA Gateway project has stagnated for many years, the entire Malacca island has become a "ghost city". Huang Jinxi's grocery store is a few stores that are still operating.
Huang Jinxi told Lianhe Zaobao that when the Emperor Jinggang project was still ongoing in the early years, some construction workers would patronize. After the project was stopped, his grocery store became deserted.
"No way, because there is no development here ... mainly because of political instability, it changed the government three times before Malacca. As a result, large projects have repeatedly reviewed."
The Huangjing Port launched in 2014 consists of three artificial islands and a natural island reclamation land.According to the initial plan, this project cost RM43 billion (approximately S $ 12.8 billion) can bring 2.5 million tourists to Malacca each year, create 45,000 jobs, and bring 1.19 trillion economic benefits.
The entire Huangjing Port Project was originally scheduled to be completed in 2025.However, when the Lianhe Morning Post interview team at the field in Malacca in mid -August, it was found that the entrance of Huangjing Port was closed. The only island made by reclamation was still empty and no project was seen.
Forested to eat the other three seaport cargo throughput Huangjing and Hong Kong difficult to get the key support of Malaysia
In Malacca Island, which is bordering No. 1 Island, a large comprehensive entertainment and leisure project is rotten, hundreds of vacant stores around, and the early deserted Arab City.The desolation of the end.
Emperor Jinggang is one of the large -scale infrastructure projects that Malaysia has cooperated with Chinese investors. It has been labeled with the "Belt and Road" in China and has received strong support from Malaysia and China.When the late Chinese premier Li Keqiang visited Malaysia in 2015, he went to the Huangjing Port List.The former Prime Minister of Malaysia, Najib, also expressed strong support and included it in the economic transformation plan.
Emperor Jinggang is led by Kaj Development, a small developer in Malacca.Construction together.
The Huangjing Port Project was launched in February 2014, taking advantage of the “Belt and Road” initiative, and immediately attracted widespread international concern.Some media, scholars, and analysts will render Huangjing Port into Singapore. After completion, it will replace Singapore as the largest seaport in the region. At the same time, China can monitor the strategic waterway that can hold the Malacca Strait that can hold the Chinese energy throat.
However, this discussion means that Huangjing Port must first replace the Port of Klang, Penang Port and Danjung Berbas.These three major seaports account for 70 % of the total throughput of Malaysia Harbor.In other words, Huangjing Port will first eat these three national seaports, as well as the vested interests of operators and investors behind them.
Singapore's Tosov Isa Easa East South Asian Research Project Director Francis Hutchinson and a senior researcher Tan Xiaoyan pointed out in a research report published in 2020 that Huangjing Port is not a national national infrastructure in MalaysiaThe project, and the development of Huangjing Port will eat the cargo throughput of the port of Klang Port and Danjung Berbas, which is likely to be the main reason why the investor group of Huangjing and Hong Kong failed to attract key investors in Malaysia.
Therefore, although the Najib government has strongly supported Huangjing Port on the surface, it has never invested any public funds for this project.The Sovereign Fund State Treasury Holdings (Khazanah), the official union enterprise such as the Employee Provident Fund (EPF), the national infrastructure investors such as the Ma Youbong (UEM) and the GAMUDA, the Hong Kong employees such as Ma Mining and Xigang Holdings, etc.Keep a distance from Huangjing Port.
Harchinsen pointed out in an analysis article published in 2019 that although Kaijie and the chief ministerial company may understand the local business environment, they are unlikely to have a good relationship network at the federal level, which may affect the direction of the direction, which may affect the towards the direction of the federal level, which may affect the direction of it.The ability of banks or capital market financing.
The project restarted last year to get the blessing of the Johor royal family
In fact, the development of Huangjing Port is indeed twists and turns.In 2018, Huang Jinggang was accused of paying payment issues. The reclamation project was suspended for a while.Due to the repeated delays of the project, the state A government stopped the reclamation permit of Huangjing Port in 2020.The project later paused.
Kaijie sued the Minister of Transport, the state government and the port institutions, and the parties reached a settlement agreement in 2022.
In September last year, Kaijie announced the support of the federal government and the state government to restart the Emperor Jinggang project, and will introduce new investors, shareholders and leadership.However, the scale of the project has been greatly reduced, and only one international cruise terminal is built.
Tan Xiaoyan pointed out in an analysis article published on February 15 this year in the research article of the research institute's website Fulcrum that the cruise terminal is part of the initial plan of Huangjing Port.Today, only the cruise terminal is built. The funds of the entire project will be reduced from the original RM43 billion to about RM682 million, which is only 63 of the initial amount.One of them.
Kaijie's shareholders have also changed, especially the blessing of the Johor royal family.
Online media today quoted the Malaysian Corporation of Malaysia in March last year that the Malaysian Corporation Committee reported that Johor Sultan Ibrahim invested RM 6 million to hold 30 % of the shareholders and is the second largest shareholder.Daing A Malek, friend of Sudan Ibrahim, also invested RM 2 million, owned 10%of the equity, and served as the executive chairman of the Kaijie board of directors.At that time, some analysts believed that the Johor royal family entered Kaijie, or it was expected to inject vitality into Huangjing Port.Sudan Ibrahim has been the head of state in Malaysia in February this year.
In terms of Chinese capital, only SinoHydro is currently involved in reclamation projects.Hydropower Construction Group is a subsidiary of China Electric Power Construction Corporation.
Shenzhen Yantian Port Group, Shandong Rizhao Port Group, Guangzhou Port Group, and Guangdong Transportation Group, which were participating in the Huangjing Port project, were originally on the 1st, No. 2, 3, and No. 4, respectively.The island has equity, but now it is unknown.
Lianhe Morning Post contacted Kaijie to ask for an interview, but there is no echo so far.
Harchinsen and Tan Xiaoyan's research report in 2020 concluded that there are two main reasons that have made it difficult for Huangjing and Hong Kong to achieve the original planning goals.One is that the local partners chosen by the Chinese funders are small and failed to play their due role; the second is that this investment project directly challenges the important interests of the national economic elite, including the richest indigenous class and influential officials.Lianlian company.
Scholar: The saying that Huangjing Port replaces Singapore is unrealistic
Due to the reduction of scale, Huangjing Port's importance and competitiveness as a strategic fortress in the Malacca Strait have also declined significantly.The combination of "Emperor Jinggang+East Coast Railway will become a new channel for trade that bypasses Singapore", and now it seems to be mirror flowers.
Harchinsen said in an interview with Lianhe Morning Post that Huangjing Port's discussion to replace Singapore was originally unrealistic. The relevant argument is that it assumes that the container will first arrive at Malacca Port.Shipping to other places.
"Most freight vendors do not support such arrangements, because this will increase risks and insurance costs, and this will not improve efficiency or shorten the transportation time. Therefore, this assumption has never been established, and it is even more unsuccessful now.The problem.
Jianjian International Cruise Wharf drives the tourism industry of Jiazhou
Wu Hongli, assistant professor of the "Belt and Road" Strategy Research Center of Ratman University in Malaysia, said in an interview that Singapore's Dasa Port is also expanding.Essence
He also reminded that if Malaysia wants to implement large -scale projects such as Huangjing Port, it must also observe the response to Indonesia, because the location of Huangjing Port is close to Indonesia.
Wu Hongli admits that the Belt and Road projects often have a high level of low.China's recent Belt and Road Initiative no longer focuses on large -scale infrastructure projects, but emphasizes people's heart communication and humanistic exchanges.
"As an important partner country in Southeast Asia, Malaysia still hopes to play an important role in the Belt and Road ... Although the two countries may have friction in each project, Malaysian -China relations have not been damaged too much."
Kaijie announced a recent cooperation with Global Ports PORTS PLC to build a dock that can accommodate multiple cruise ships. The goal is to make Malacca the top center of Southeast Asia, attracting 3.5 million tourists each year.
Qiu Peidong, a member of Malacca City Congress, said in an interview with Lianhe Morning Post that the advantage of Malacca's occupation of geographical location is a transit station from Singapore to Klang Port and Penang.In addition, the tourist attractions of Malacca are only 10 minutes to 15 minutes from the tourist attractions in the city center.
"This is quite attractive for cruise ship companies. They have always suggested to build a cruise terminal at Malacca. Cruise company and government survey shows that as long as the cruise terminal can be built, it will help drive the surrounding areas to develop."
However, Tan Xiaoyan pointed out in an analysis article on the Fulcrum website that the cruise tourism competition on the west coast of the Malaysian Peninsula is quite fierce.For example, the expansion project was completed in 2021, the Ruitian Xianxian Wharf Passenger Terminal of Penang, and can be stopped at the same time to provide two quantum cruise ships to provide 12,000 passengers.In addition, the Malaysian government announced in January this year that it will develop the Port of Klang into an international cruise ship's port, and the size of the parent port is much larger than the Hong Kong.
Tan Xiaoyan also pointed out that Penang, which has a mature tourism infrastructure, received 500,000 international cruise passengers last year. The goals set by Huangjing Port are too optimistic.
Slow engineering and influencing environmental dissatisfaction
"In addition, it is expected that global economic growth will slow down, and it will become difficult to attract investors to develop cruise ships."
Tan Xiaoyan believes that if you want to attract cruise passengers to Malacca, the official must develop attractive tourism products and protect Malacca's historical heritage."Login of a large number of cruise passengers in small cities such as Malacca may bring sustainable challenges."
The launch of the Emperor Jinggang project for 10 years, but the progress has made the local people feel helpless.Many people also wait and see for the plan to build the international cruise terminal.
Residents told Lianhe Zaobao on the same way. If the cruise ship is sure to do it, he is happy to see it because it can attract tourists to Malacca to sightseeing.
Another resident Ghana also said that if the project can be implemented in a correct way and launched marketing publicity, it will be beneficial to Malacca."But if it becomes another white elephant project, or becomes another rotten project after spelling, of course I will not support it."
Qiu Peidong emphasized in an interview that when the state government approved the restart of the Huangjing Port project, Kaijie requested that Kaijie must build the cruise terminal by the end of 2025.
"The Emperor Jinggang Project has been dragged for nearly 10 years since 2014, so we ask developers to focus on the cruise ship wharf first. At present, we have not seen the relevant projects began. We will closely supervise"
On the other hand, the reclamation project of Huangjing Port once destroyed the livelihood of Portuguese fishermen, causing dissatisfaction with some local environmental groups.
SOS Melaka, the local environmental organization, told Malaysia in March last March: "According to our monitoring, it is estimated that about 60%of the reclamation land in Huangjing and Hong Kong does not have any demand protection.Therefore, the surrounding coasts continue to face erosion and pollution.
Qiu Peidong emphasized that the Huangjing -Hong Kong project must comply with the environmental impact assessment report. It is not necessary to blindly destroy the Malacca Coast.
Because the Huangjing -Hong Kong project has been delayed over the years, the restart plan has not attracted much attention in the Malaysia country. Many analysts do not master the latest progress of the project, and many people have even forgotten this project.
