Sarawak plans to double its oil palm estate by 2020, reports The Star.
James Masing, State Land Development Minister, told The Star that Sarawak is planting oil palm faster than any other state in Malaysia and is on track to become country’s the largest producer of palm oil by the end of the decade. He said Sarawak’s plantation area climbed to 920,000 hectares in June 2010, up from 840,000 hectares a year ago. Sarawak is targeting 2 million hectares by 2020.
Masing told The Star the state would look into “more aggressive development” of native customary rights land, which covers an estimated 1.5 million hectares, but has been a point of conflict between industrial developers and traditional forest users like the Penan. The government has already approved more than 720,000 hectares of NCR land for joint-venture development, according to The Star.
 Oil palm plantation and logged natural forest, Sabah, Malaysia. Photo: R. Butler/mongabay.com |
Private oil palm plantations make up about 80 percent of the total planted area in Sarawak. According to The Star, the major planters include Rimbunan Hijau Group, Ta Ann Holdings Bhd, Samling Group, Lembaga Tabung Haji and Boustead Group. Sime Darby Bhd and IOI Corp Bhd are also investing in expansion in the state.
Masing said Sarawak’s crude and processed palm oil exports were worth 4.56 billion ringgit ($1.4 billion) last year, making it the “third-largest foreign exchange earner after petroleum and liquified natural gas”. The state collected 207 million ringgit ($65 million) in tax revenue.
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