Kedah Rubber City (KRC), the first dedicated Rubber Industrial Park in Kedah, a state in northwest Malaysia bordering Thailand, was able to attract over RM2.2 billion ($536 million) in committed investments, even during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Covering an area of 1,244 acres, the Rubber Industrial Park is aimed at boosting the development of Malaysia’s rubber industry. The funds will be used for advanced latex product development, production of feedstock, manufacturing, storage warehousing and logistics, according to a Bernama report. 

The KRC project is a synergistic effort supported by Malaysia and Thailand to stimulate socioeconomic development in the border region. It will be developed into a “Rubber Corridor” that will link the region’s major rubber producers in the Indonesia-Malaysia-Thailand Growth Triangle (IMT-GT). 

The Kedah Menteri Besar or Chief Minister, Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor, pointed out in a recent statement that KRC is an attractive destination for businesses in the medical devices sector, particularly for medical glove manufacturers, to expand their operations.  He said he was pleased with the Northern Corridor Implementation Authority’s (NCIA) investment performance where RM6.8 billion ($1.65 billion) in approved investments was secured in the first quarter of this year. This amount exceeded the approved investment target for Kedah this year by more than 20 percent, he added, explaining that the proximity to raw materials and the lucrative border trade with Thailand were factors making KRC particularly attractive to investors. Over 4,500 jobs are to be created in the area. 

Datuk Seri Jebasingam Issace John, Chief Executive of NCIA, noted that, linked with the Malaysian rubber industry value chain, KRC is the first dedicated rubber industrial park in the country that is anticipated to accelerate the Malaysian rubber sector to be a regional high-value rubber manufacturing hub in ASEAN. 

KRC is spread across almost 505.86ha and is a national project under the Northern Corridor Economic Region’s Strategic Development Plan 2021-2025. 

Following the completion of Phase 1 basic infrastructure works, the Rubber Park is now ready to accept investors. They will have access to critical feedstock to produce rubber products through the construction of a storage tank farm in the Penang Port. A logistics hub, complete with a depot and warehousing facility, are to be established in KRC to complement the storage tank farm. The construction of the facilities are to start by the end of 2021 and commence operations by the second half of 2023.

https://irjournal.com/singleblog/2250/kedah-rubber-city-draws-over-536mn-in-investments