4/12/06 (Thew Star) KUCHING - The Assar Senari group is poised to become a major player in the bulk petroleum and palm oil industries in Sarawak following the opening of its industrial complex in Senari Monday.

The RM350mil complex comprises an independent oil terminal (IOT); a palm oil refinery; an oil, gas and chemicals jetty; and a light industrial park for petrochemicals, oleo-chemicals and related industries. 

The flagships of the complex are the IOT, owned by Assar Senari Holdings subsidiary Assar Chemicals Sdn Bhd, and the refinery, owned and operated by Assar Refinery Services Sdn Bhd, a joint-venture company between the group, the Sarawak Land Consolidation and Rehabilitation Authority and US-based Cargill. 

Group chairman Tan Sri Bujang Mohd Nor said the IOT was mainly a petroleum distribution terminal providing a centralised and common-user facility for storage and distribution of bulk petroleum and its related products.

“It has an annual storage capacity of 850,000 tonnes and is designed to cater to the Sarawak southern region’s market demand up to 2035,” he said.

The terminal will be managed and operated by IOT Management Sdn Bhd, a joint venture between the Assar Senari group, Petronas Dagangan Bhd and Shell Timur Sdn Bhd.