The Penang Development Corporation (PDC) today announced that it would be leasing a piece of 2ha land in Bukit Minyak near Bukit Mertajam to a company to build a foreign workers’ hostel.

Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow said the RM250 million hostel would primarily cater to the booming Batu Kawan Industrial Park, which is located nearby.

The hostel will be able to accommodate 12,313 people in five blocks, with eight retail outlets on the ground floor and other amenities, he said.

He said the 684-room, 900sq ft/unit project would be undertaken by Biopolis Resources Sdn Bhd who had been granted a 99-year lease by the PDC, the state’s development and investment arm.

The project is now being considered by the Seberang Perai City Council before work can begin and it will take four years to complete.

PDC, in return, will receive rental returns from 42 units worth RM33 million for a 15-year period. The hostel is located at Jalan PSPN 1, Penang Science Park, Bukit Minyak.

Chow said the project was a good example of what a workers’ hostel should be, as more international manufacturers set-up shop in the Batu Kawan Industrial Park.

He said these international manufacturers want a hostel that meets world labour standards, as they were constantly being audited on how they provide for their workers.

“With this hostel, we believe that multinationals could meet human rights standards of the European Union and developed nations,” he said.

Earlier, Chow witnessed the signing of an agreement between the PDC’s general manager Mohd Bazid Abdul Kahar and Biopolis Resources Sdn Bhd’s H’ng Bok Sen.

The project’s proponent and architect Jong East Full said the hostel was designed to be naturally cool with proper ventilation and it had received a Green Building Index silver standard rating.

He said the hostels would be rented out directly to factories or companies seeking accommodation for their workers.

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Source: FreeMalaysiaToday.com