Penang Must Explore Setting Up Gold Bazaar To Strengthen Financial Hub Aspiration -- Sim
BATU KAWAN, Sept 15 (Bernama) -- Penang should consider exploring the establishment of a gold bazaar and potentially a gold storage facility as part of efforts to develop the state into a regional gold hub, said Entrepreneur and Cooperatives Development Minister Steven Sim Chee Keong.
He said the proposal would complement the state’s established gold jewellery manufacturing industry and strengthen gold’s role as one of the key assets supporting Penang’s aspiration to become a financial hub.
“I hope eventually, together with the state government and the federal government, we can complete this ecosystem by including or setting up a gold bazaar here in Penang.
“There is nothing to stop Penang from being a Dubai plus one or an India plus one, because gold buyers and sellers are looking for alternative locations,” he said at the launch of Public Gold’s new international-standard refinery here today.
Also present was Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow.
Sim said Penang’s established gold manufacturing industry, which accounts for about 70 per cent of Malaysia’s gold jewellery manufacturing and production, gave the state a strong foundation to develop into a regional gold bazaar.
He said developing a complete gold ecosystem, including manufacturing, refining, trading and storage, could unlock existing wealth and attract new capital to support Penang’s development.
Meanwhile, Public Gold founder and executive chairman Datuk Seri Louis Ng said the new refinery, seated on a 0.461 hectare site within the Batu Kawan Industrial Park with a built-up area of approximately 4,038.68 square metres, is designed to refine up to 10 tonnes of precious metals annually, with the capacity to expand between 20 tonnes and 50 tonnes per year as market demand grows.
He said the facility would enable Public Gold to refine scrap gold locally instead of sending it to overseas facilities, helping the company reduce transportation, insurance and refining costs.
Ng said Public Gold had exported about two tonnes of scrap gold to Hong Kong and Singapore for refining over the past two months.
“With this refinery, which follows international standards, we can refine it here in Malaysia,” he said.
The project also creates approximately 1,000 direct employment opportunities, ranging from highly skilled technical and engineering positions to quality assurance, operations, and corporate support functions, he added.
-- BERNAMA