Answer for Oral Question PL065

QUESTION

Yang Berhormat Pehin Orang Kaya Indera Pahlawan Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Suyoi bin Haji Osman

YANG BERHORMAT PEHIN ORANG KAYA INDERA PAHLAWAN DATO SERI SETIA AWANG HAJI SUYOI BIN HAJI OSMAN requested the MENTERI DI JABATAN PERDANA MENTERI DAN MENTERI KEWANGAN DAN EKONOMI II to state the successes of the Brunei Economic Development Board in attracting new foreign investors to the country under the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Initiative.

ANSWER

Yang Berhormat Menteri di Jabatan Perdana Menteri dan Menteri Kewangan dan Ekonomi II

One example of a successful foreign direct investment (FDI) through the PPP approach is the establishment of Anson International Sdn Bhd (AISB), a joint venture between the Government of Kebawah Duli Yang Maha Mulia Paduka Seri Baginda Sultan dan Yang Di-Pertuan Negara Brunei Darussalam, through the Strategic Development Capital Fund, and the local partner company, Qaswa Holdings Sdn Bhd, together with the foreign investor, Dongil Shipyard Co. Ltd. from the Republic of Korea.

Through this PPP structure, the Company was developed as a strategic industrial project focusing on:

• Marine vessel maintenance, or Marine Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul; as well as
• Decommissioning and Restoration activities.

For information, the first phase of the project will focus on vessel maintenance within the integrated yard. Meanwhile, the second phase will encompass the expansion of activities, including vessel conversion, well subsurface intervention, module and marine construction, as well as the waste-to-energy conversion initiative.

In terms of economic impact, the project is expected to generate annual revenue of between BND10 million and BND25 million, as well as create local employment opportunities.

The implementation of the project at the Pulau Muara Besar Industrial Site will also strengthen the country's position as a regional marine services hub, thereby supporting the country's economic diversification agenda.

Another example of success under the PPP initiative is the establishment of Muara Port Company Sdn Bhd ("MPC"), a joint venture between the Government, through Darussalam Assets, and Guangxi Beibu Gulf International Port Group., Ltd ("Beibu Company"), through Beibu Gulf Holding (Hong Kong) Co., Ltd, on 21 February 2017, to fully take over the operation of the operational assets and management of Muara Container Terminal ("MCT") and Muara Conventional Terminal ("MCVT"), as well as other port assets.

This collaboration has contributed to:

• Increased national maritime connectivity through the introduction of new shipping lines and an increase in the number of destinations, from 8 to 12, as well as increased utilisation of Muara Port and supported the growth of the local logistics industry.

• In addition, this PPP initiative has comprehensively improved Muara Port, including the Muara Fish Landing Complex through MPC's subsidiary, Muara International Fish Landing Sdn Bhd, to enhance operational efficiency and increase the throughput rate through Muara Port, from an average of 643 thousand tonnes in 2016 to an average of 1.2 million tonnes in 2025.

• At the same time, this PPP effort is in line with the "Pelan Induk Pelabuhan Muara" (Muara Port Masterplan), which was launched in August 2024 as a guideline for MPC to realise strategic objectives such as reducing logistics costs, providing more value-added services, supporting the development of human resource capabilities and creating business continuity. The main benefits of the project include increasing the capacity of the Container Terminal from 220,000 Twenty-foot Equivalent Units (TEUs) to 500,000 Twenty-foot Equivalent Units (TEUs), and the construction of a 3.62-hectare Port Trade Zone within the container terminal.

• In addition, Alhamdulillah, this PPP initiative has also contributed to an increase in employment opportunities since the establishment of MPC, from 88 employees to 285 employees as at January 2026, of whom 96% are local citizens.

Overall, this PPP project has demonstrated success in attracting strategic foreign investors, transferring technical expertise and developing local industrial capacity through collaboration between the Government, the private sector and international investors, while, most importantly, creating more local employment opportunities.