BINTULU: Infrastructure development in Samalaju Industrial Park (SIP) such as roads and port is very essential for the smooth operations of the industries.
Hundreds of Tokuyama employees attend the inauguration ceremony on Wednesday.
Continuous infrastructure development in SIP would be very crucial not only for the investors but specifically for the expansion of investment from Japan in the future, said Japanese Ambassador to Malaysia (Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary) Dr Makio Miyagawa.
He expressed his gratitude to the Malaysian and Sarawak governments for their unfailing efforts in providing good infrastructure to Tokuyama Malaysia who was among the first giant companies investing in SIP which is part of the Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy (SCORE).
He said this during the inauguration ceremony of Tokuyama Polycrystalline Silicon Factory at SIP on Wednesday.
“This event represents yet another friendship and partnership of the two nations which have been striving for so many years,” he said.
Tokuyama Corporation is an innovative supplier of polycrystalline silicon for solar power generation worldwide and it has completed the construction of two production plants in SIP for solar cells manufacturing.
“Tokuyama Malaysia is now a pioneer polycrystalline silicon producer in Malaysia and its factory is unique, being the only one in Asean region.
“I am confident that this factory will be able to embark on a large scale production soon and help Malaysia to establish a solar industry value chain throughout South East Asia.
“As the Malaysian economy advances from labour-intensive to technology-driven, Tokuyama Malaysia with its highly advanced technology in areas of products for renewable energy will help Malaysia to strive further and establish its aspiration to become a high-income and developed nation by 2020.
The strong Malaysia-Japan relationship has been forged for many years, and it was not only in economy and commercial partnership that they thrive but also in political and human resource educational cooperation.
“The two nations should continue to be closely inter-linked on economic and security domains,” he said.
Japan, Miyagawa said was one of major trading partners of Malaysia and is the biggest investor in Malaysia for many years.
Tokuyama Corporation Japan president Dato Sri Kazuhisa Kogo, meanwhile, said since the entry of Tokuyama into Sarawak, they have received a warm welcome and support from the locals.
The company employs 120 Japanese and 600 Malaysians who work together to compete successfully in a global arena, he said.