Preston Shipyard to operate Labuan Marine Department workshop

LABUAN: Preston Shipyard Sdn Bhd, a Labuan-based company, has been awarded the concession rights to manage and operate the Labuan Marine Department workshop under a government privatization Arrangement. A concession agreement for 30 years was signed on Wednesday between Transport Ministry secretary general Datuk Long See Wool and Preston Shipyard managing director Zailani Mansor, in Putra Jaya.

“Under the agreement, we are authorized to carry out ship construction, maintenance and repair work for government agencies, the commercial and private sectors”, Zailani said. He added that the concession was awarded through a tender. “We would be paying the government a concession fee as well as five per cent of the annual revenue derived from businesses generated at the workshop,” he said. Facilities on the 8.6-acre site include a 600-ton slipway, a jet-ty, six workshop and office buildings.

Zailani also said that as they progress, there would be more employment opportunities that augur well for the local economy. Present to witness the signing ceremony at the Transport Ministry were Preston Shipyard executive directors Siti Rohaya Matassan and Raja Mahmud Shah as well as secretary of the ministry’s maritime division Abdullah Yusuff Basiron.