NBCT - North Butterworth Containers Terminal

NBCT (North Butterworth Container Terminal) a.k.a Penang Port is a GLC (Government Linked Corporation) and own by Penang Port Sdn Berhad. It is linked by the Malayan Railway via Butterworth Railway Terminal which can link to most part of Peninsular Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand.


The view of the NBCT from the strait between Butterworth and Penang Island. The new port complement the function of Butterworth Deep Sea Wharf.

Situated at Bagan town centre, north of Ferry terminal.


Tuesday May 11, 2010
PPSB to continue investing and upgrading facilities in Butterworth
By DAVID TAN
thestar

THE Penang Port Sdn Bhd (PPSB) has no plans to relocate from its present strategic location in Butterworth, said its general manager (marketing) Ghazali Jaafar.

He said there was no such directive from any authority on the matter.

“We have not been told to move nor do we have plans to move. As the operator of the port, PPSB will continue to invest and expand the present location.

“Penang Port will continue to upgrade and reinvent its provision of services to be on par with other international ports,” he said, adding that it was currently undertaking expansion of the North Butterworth Container Terminal (NBCT).

Gazali said over RM1bil had been committed for the third phase of NBCT.

“Upon completion, NBCT’s handling capacity will be doubled to 2mil TEUs (twenty-equivalent units) annually from the existing capacity, which will be sufficient to cater to the demand over the next three to five years.

He added that the project was expected to be completed by the third quarter of this year.

Ghazali said PSB was also building another bulk cargo terminal in Prai - the Kuala Perai Terminal - to cater for bulk cargo handling, which was experiencing growth.

Costing more than RM300 million, the project will be able to handle over 4mil metric tonnes of cargo annually.

“We’re still in the planning stages for this project, which will take off in the next two years,” he noted.

Ghazali said with Port Tanjung Pelepas (PTP) and Pasir Gudang in the south, Port Klang in the middle, and Penang Port in the north, there was sufficient capacity to handle the international trade of Malaysia and of the region.

“There is no need for another port,” he added.

Last week, Transport Minister Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat had said the 224-year-old Penang Port, the oldest in the country, might be relocated to a more suitable location, drawing clamour from various trade organisations and shipping agents that wanted to see the port remain in the state.

Penang Chinese Chamber of Commerce (PCCC) president Tan Sri Tan Kok Ping said that all the money that had been spent on upgrading their infrastructure would go to waste if the port was relocated.

“If there is a need for an additional terminal to cater for bigger vessels, then it has to be built in Penang,” he said.

North Malaysia Shipping Agents Associa-tion (NMSSA) president Franco Ong also said it did not make sense to relocate the port, as over RM1bil had been spent to upgrade it.

“If an additional terminal is to be constructed, it should remain in Penang and within a 30km radius of the present terminals,” he said.

Locating the port outside Penang would incur extra costs for container depots at industrial estate in the state as they also need to be shifted.

Penang Freight Forwarders Association (PFFA) president Krishnan Chelliah said it was acceptable for a new terminal to be located within a 75km to 80km radius of the NBCT and PBCT within the state.

“In Johor, Port Tanjung Pelepas is also about 80km away from the old port Pasir Gudang, and it is not creating inconvenience for shippers and importers and exporters,” he said.