MPOB Research station to boost Melaka's palm oil industry: Ab Rauf
05/07/2026 (Bernama), Jasin - The Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) will build a strategic research station on a 40.47-hectare site in Seri Mendapat, Sungai Rambai, costing between RM20 million and RM25 million.
Melaka Chief Minister Datuk Seri Ab Rauf Yusoh said the project, slated under the 13th Malaysia Plan, is aimed at boosting the state's palm oil industry.
"The state government has allocated the land for MPOB's research station, which is one of three major initiatives set to transform Melaka's commodity sector," he told reporters at Kampung Seri Mendapat today.
He outlined that the site will house a model plantation, an R&D centre, modern labs, a training facility, quarters for TUNAS advisory officers, enforcement teams and other support infrastructure.
He spoke after launching the Jelajah Ketua Menteri Sayang Rakyat and Hello Komoditi 2026 events, held under the Sungai Rambai Wakil Rakyat Untuk Rakyat (WRUR) programme. Also present was Sungai Rambai assemblywoman Datuk Siti Faizah Abdul Azis.
Ab Rauf said the facility will position Sungai Rambai as a hub for knowledge, innovation, and palm oil industry development, creating more jobs, skills training and economic spillover for the local community.
He added that the initiative aligns with the state government's vision to elevate the commodity sector from a mere source of income into a modern, competitive, high-value driver of the rural economy.
Separately, he noted that a 5‑km private smallholder farm road at Ladang Lembah Kesang, Mukim Semujuk, will be built under an approved RM400,000 allocation.
"It may just be a road to some, but for smallholders, it speeds up produce delivery to market, cuts operating costs and eases their mobility. This facility is expected to directly benefit over 200 smallholders," he said.
The state government will continue to champion the needs of the Sungai Rambai community, nearly 45 per cent of which is made up of farmers and smallholders, he added.
MPOB has rolled out the Smallholder Oil Palm Replanting Financing Incentive Scheme 2.0, offering eligible smallholders up to RM14,000 per hectare to replace ageing, low-yield trees with superior seedlings.
Repayment only begins in year five, easing upfront financial strain.
On another development, Ab Rauf said the state has sought RM200,000 from the federal government to upgrade an ageing watergate at Jeti Sebatu.
Meanwhile, RM350,000 drainage works along a 300-metre Sungai Sebatu outlet are already underway to curb flood risks.
These projects respond directly to flood complaints from the local fishing community raised during the Jelajah Ketua Menteri Sayang Rakyat and WRUR programme, he said.