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Entrepreneurial opportunities abound in industrial park co-built by Malaysia, China

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      China

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      Entrepreneurial opportunities abound in industrial park co-built by Malaysia, China

      2024-06-19 17:01 Last Updated At:17:47

      The first industrial park jointly developed by Malaysia and China has helped entrepreneurs capitalize on the Southeast Asian country's highly-educated workforce and provided quality jobs for Malaysians, according to business community leaders.

      Partnership between twin industrial parks in Malaysia and China has greatly boosted economic integration between the two countries over the past decade. Known as the "Two Countries, Twin Parks" program, the parks constitute a flagship project of cooperation under the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative.

      Founded in February 2013, the Malaysia-China Kuantan Industrial Park (MCKIP), together with its sister park, the China-Malaysia Qinzhou Industrial Park situated in China's southern Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, has set an innovative example of bilateral economic cooperation under the program's model.

      Among the Chinese companies in the MCKIP, Camel Power is the park's newest tenant. It produces about 15,000 car-starter batteries per day, with a mostly local workforce, providing vast high-quality job opportunities to the country's fast-developing east coast region.

      "We select the employee that's highly educated, for example, from the diploma holder and some bachelor, some higher like a master or even doctorate degree. So, that's easier for our transfer of the knowhow to local manpower," said Jerry Xue Shihua, Camel Power Malaysia.

      The East Coast Economic Region Development Council is also tasked with spurring socioeconomic development in the region.

      "We look at all the economic sectors that could support the region and this includes manufacturing, oil and gas and petrochemicals, agriculture as it has been a generally agrarian society, tourism because of the natural endowments that are there, and human capital development," said Ragu Sampasivam, COO of the development council.

      Also in the industrial park, the vast Chinese-owned Alliance Steel plant is employing nearly 3,000 Malaysian workers. Alliance exports its products from the park across Southeast Asia, and to Africa, Europe and the Americas.

      "We chose this location because the Malaysia-China Kuantan Industrial Park is a special collaboration between the two countries. Also, this place has relatively rich mineral resources, and the advantage of having good human resources," said Steve Hu Jiulin, chief technology officer of Alliance Steel Malaysia. The steel firm also vigorously boosts the business of the Kuantan port, with further growth momentum expected with the undertaking of another China-Malaysia joint venture, the 665-km long East Coast Rail Link (ECRL).

      Undertaken by the China Communications Construction Company, the mega rail project is expected to connect Port Klang near capital Kuala Lumpur and other cities and major ports along the east coast by 2027 to bring more balanced economic development to the country.

      "All this is going to help to increase the employment opportunities, entrepreneurial opportunities for local parties to be suppliers. We also think that it will help local industries to move up a level up because these are huge investments which need our local suppliers to also expand their operation," said Sampasivam.

      Entrepreneurial opportunities abound in industrial park co-built by Malaysia, China

      Entrepreneurial opportunities abound in industrial park co-built by Malaysia, China

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      Canadian energy sector braces for potential US tariffs

      2025-01-23 20:56 Last Updated At:21:07

      Canada's energy industry is preparing for possible disruptions as the country faces the Trump administration's looming threat of a 25 percent tariff.

      Following his presidential election victory in November, Trump announced he would sign an executive order imposing a 25-percent tariff on all Canadian goods imported into the United States.

      Concerns are rising in Canada over the tariff threat, particularly its potential consequences for the energy sector.

      Turner Valley, located about 80 kilometers from Calgary in the Canadian Province of Alberta, is a key hub for the region's petroleum industry, with visible signs of energy production throughout.

      In 1914, a wet natural gas eruption from a well bore in the area laid the foundation for Alberta's petrochemical industry, marking the start of the modern era of oil and gas exploration and processing.

      However, the threat of sweeping tariffs poses a potential challenge to energy companies in the region.

      "Canada makes approximately four and a half million barrels a day of oil, almost all of it going to the United States as an export product. So with that backdrop, a 25 percent tariff on 140 billion dollars is roughly 35 billion dollars a year, and that is something that will have a major local Canadian economic impact," said Grant Strem, an expert advising various energy companies.

      Signs are already emerging that peripheral companies are preparing for a fallout by scaling back operations and looking for new opportunities elsewhere.

      Jeff LaFrenz, CEO and co-founder of Calgary-based VizworX, a custom software development firm, works with clients across the energy industry.

      "We're looking at this from the perspective of, okay, maybe the U.S. stuff gets put off now, and maybe we go after these other ones, which we seem to have more traction and more trust that we can actually move forward on that. And so ultimately, when those questions are raised, you're going to start looking for places where there's less risk. And right now, the U.S. is becoming more risk at this point," LaFrenz said.

      The impact of these tariffs would not be confined to Canada alone. U.S. refineries, particularly those in the Midwest, process nearly all of Canada's crude oil exports.

      A potential tariff could increase the cost of refining, with the possibility of those higher costs being passed on to consumers.

      While the prospect of U.S. tariffs on Canadian goods presents significant challenges for the energy industry, LaFrenz views it as a chance to explore new avenues.

      "These kind of events force us to look to other places and find opportunities we may not have really considered before, but actually might even be better in many cases," he said.

      Canadian energy sector braces for potential US tariffs

      Canadian energy sector braces for potential US tariffs

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