The official opening of the new international passenger ship terminal at the Swettenham Pier International Cruise Terminal in February is expected to attract more tourists to Penang and thereby boost the state economy.
Chairman of the Penang Port Commission (PPC), Tan Cheng Liang, said the terminal, which has just been constructed and is under trials, could receive bigger cruise ships with tonnage up to 70,000 tonnes compared to the old terminal that could only receive ships up to 25,000 tonnes.
With the capabilty of the terminal to receive bigger ships, Tan said, the number of ship passengers staying over in Penang was expected to double.
"In 2008, 1,770 international and domestic ships brought in 621,559 passengers into Penang Port and if each passenger spent RM200 each, imagine the income that can be generated through this tourism sector," she told a news conference after welcoming passengers of the luxury cruise ship 'Superstar Libra' which made its maiden visit to the terminal here on Friday.
Superstar Libra, 216m in length with a gross weight of 42,276 tonnes and able to carry 1,472 passengers, is scheduled to stop at the terminal every two weeks.
Tan said the maiden visit of the cruise ship was not only as trial visit but was a symbol of the emergence of a new landmark in Penang.
Beside Superstar Libra other cruise ships expected to visit the terminal are the Superstar Virgo, the AIDAcara, the Amusement, and the biggest cruise ship in the world, the Queen Mary, in February.
"Besides that, the terminal also has facilities for passenger ferries that provide services between Penang and Langkawi and between Penang and Medan, Indonesia," she said.
The 15,000 sq. feet terminal also has new three-storey building that house Customs and Immigration offices, quarantine area and parking space for 18 buses and 48 taxis.
It also has 400m wharves and two dolphins for ships to berth.
The jetty was built since 2005 with a cost of RM65 million and can handle 100,000 passengers a day compared to the present one that handle 50,000 a day.
Before luxury cruise ships had to drop anchor away from the jetty and boats had to be used to transport passengers to land.
-- BERNAMA
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