Advertisement
Malaysia
This Week in AsiaHealth & Environment

Malaysia has one of Asia’s longest coastlines. So why the obsession with artificial islands affecting environment and fisherfolk?

  • Despite having around 5,000km of coast, Malaysia has several reclamation projects including Maharani Energy Gateway near Johor’s town of Muar
  • Environmentalists, analysts, opposition politicians question wealthy backers’ transparency and why new energy storage facility is needed at all

Reading Time:5 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
12
Southeast Asia’s Malaysia has around 5,000km of coastline. File photo: Eastern & Oriental Hotel, Penang
SCMP Reporters
With Malaysia’s expanse of unused land and a coastline spanning almost 5,000km, citizens have long wondered why reclamation projects keep cropping up in the country.
Advertisement

In the state of Penang on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia, environmentalists have been battling with the authorities for years over a multibillion-dollar island-building scheme they believe will irreversibly damage marine life.

A gargantuan US$100 billion coastline metropolis being fashioned as Malaysia’s answer to China’s Shenzhen, down south in the state of Johor, has faced similar questions.

Potential buyers with a model of ‘Forest City’ homes in Johor, Malaysia. The development on artificial islands is supposed to house over 700,000 residents when it is finished. File photo: EPA-EFET
Potential buyers with a model of ‘Forest City’ homes in Johor, Malaysia. The development on artificial islands is supposed to house over 700,000 residents when it is finished. File photo: EPA-EFET
The Chinese-backed Forest City project next to Singapore, comprising four artificial islands, has been called a failure by some. A recent media report indicated developers had turned over the keys to a mere fraction of the 700,000 people they envisaged would live in the zone by 2035, when it is scheduled to be completed.

The project, two-thirds owned by Chinese developer Country Garden, has had added scrutiny because of an ownership stake involving a local firm controlled by the powerful Sultan Ibrahim Ismail, the ruler of Johor.

Malaysia’s Sultan Ibrahim Ismail is prominent in some huge projects in his state, Johor. Photo: Internet
Malaysia’s Sultan Ibrahim Ismail is prominent in some huge projects in his state, Johor. Photo: Internet

Recently, citizens and observers alike have been eyeballing another potential waste of time and money – the 3,200-acre Maharani Energy Gateway near Johor’s historical town of Muar, about 180km (111 miles) north of Forest City.

Advertisement

The 99 billion ringgit (US$23.5 billion) 10-year project, which will involve the creation of three artificial islands in the Strait of Malacca for petrochemical plants and oil and gas storage, also involves the billionaire Sultan. The company running the scheme was formed last year but construction has not yet started.

Advertisement