Bintulu satellite chip production facility to be completed by 2029, 500 Sarawak engineers to be involved

By Shikin Louis

KOTA SAMARAHAN, Aug 15: A satellite chip production facility in Bintulu is targeted for completion by 2029, with 500 Sarawakian engineers expected to be involved.

Sarawak Premier Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg said the project, developed in collaboration with South Korea, has already begun, with its building currently under construction.

“The building is being developed now. And within three years, it will be completed,” he told reporters during a doorstop interview after officiating the Sarawak Youth Week 2026 celebration at the Kota Samarahan Civic Centre here today.

He also said the South Korean partner wants 500 Sarawakian engineers to work alongside its Korean engineers as the project develops.

The company will also collaborate with local universities, including Swinburne University of Technology Sarawak, to train students through internship programmes.

“And once they have completed their studies, they can be absorbed into the company to become engineers in producing the chips I mentioned earlier,” he said.

In his speech earlier, Abang Johari describes the Bintulu development as a testbed involving technology that uses light to generate energy for satellites.

He explains that light can be broken down into its various components to generate energy, with chips forming part of the technology inside satellites.

Abang Johari describes the development as the “first in the world” in Bintulu and says he hopes it will succeed within three years.

The project is part of Sarawak’s push into high-value semiconductor and space-related technologies while creating opportunities for local engineering talent.

Abang Johari said Sarawak currently has two major investments involving engineering talent, namely the Bintulu project and the expansion of Western Digital’s (WD) plant in Kuching.

The Bintulu development also adds to Sarawak’s growing involvement in the semiconductor sector, following the expansion of a semiconductor polysilicon facility in Samalaju which Abang Johari previously said would require about 1,000 engineers and produce material for what he described as “space energy” technology.

Abang Johari also said Bintulu’s recognition by the World Economic Forum as a new low-carbon industrial cluster further strengthens its potential to play an important role in the global economic transition.

“If Bintulu has already been recognised by the World Economic Forum as the New Industrial Cluster, Low Carbon, we play an important role in the changing economy of the world today,” he emphasised. — DayakDaily

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