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Jurong Island

Jurong Island was officially declared opened by Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong on 14 October 2000. The opening marks the completion of a plan by the government to develop Jurong Island into a premier hub for the chemical industry in the Asia Pacific. So far, the island has attracted S$21 billion in investments from 61 companies that plan to capitalise on the optimal concentration of the fully integrated petroleum, petrochemical and chemical industries there.

Singapore's newly created chemical cluster was formed through an amalgamation of seven southern islands: Pulau Merlimau, Pulau Ayer Chawan, Pulau Ayer Merbau, Pulau Seraya, Pulau Sakra, Pulau Pesek and Pulau Pesek Kecil, through reclamation.

S$7 billion of reclamation work has been invested in Jurong Island, which has an area of 2,650 ha. Further reclamation work, scheduled for completion by 2004, is expected to boost the size of the island to 3,200 ha. The island is connected to Singapore mainland by a S$300 million causeway to facilitate the movement of raw materials and finished products. An IT masterplan is also being implemented to enable companies on the island to operate on a common e-business platform.

The Economic Development Board has set a target of attracting 150 companies investing about S$40 billion in fixed assets to Jurong Island by 2010. Top petrochemical companies such as Chevron, Sumitomo, DuPont, Exxon, Mobil, Celanese, Mitsui and Lonza, have already started operations on the island, while third party service providers of utilities, tankages and terminal facilities, such as SembCorp Utilities & Terminals, as well as Vopak and Oiltanking Singapore Ltd, have also found it advantageous to be located there. Output from the chemical sector reached S$23.7 billion in 1999 and the island is likely to provide jobs for 15,000 workers by 2003. 



Author
Cheang Chee Yew © National Library Board, 2001



References 
EDB, JTC Deliver on Jurong Island Promise. (2000, October 15). The Straits Times, p. 2.

Jurong Island: Full Steam Ahead. (2000, October 13). The Business Times (Singapore), p. 26. 

SembCorp, Partners to Put $1b in Jurong Island Deals. (2000, March 31). The Business Times (Singapore), p. 2.

Jurong Island (n.d.). Retrieved 2001, from www.jurongisland.com.sg

National Archives of Singapore. (n.d.). Speech by Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong at the official opening of Jurong Island on Saturday, 14 October 2000,at 7.00 pm. Retrieved 2001, from http://stars.nhb.gov.sg/public/starsDetail.jsp?&chkDVD_id=11114

PAO Enterprise. (1998). Singapore: Jurong Island Developing an Integrated, World-class Petroleum and Petrochemical Hub. Retrieved March 27, 2001, from http://www.cpec.nus.edu.sg/myweb/newsletter/news3/jurong.html 

The information in this article is valid as at 2001 and correct as far as we are able to ascertain from our sources. It is not intended to be an exhaustive or complete history of the subject. Please contact the Library for further reading materials on the topic.

Subject
Architecture and Landscape>>Streets and Places
Geography>>Population>>Urban Planning
Geography>>Geographical Areas and Countries>>Singapore Offshore Islands
Islands--Singapore
Reclamation of land--Singapore
Jurong Island--Singapore
Arts>>Architecture>>Area planning
Business, finance and industry>>Industry



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