The massive Sabah-Sarawak Gas Pipeline (SSGP) will create many positive economic spin-offs for the people of both states, including the rural communities, says a Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS) academician who conducted a social impact study on the communities living within the vicinity of the pipeline.
Dr Shahren Ahmad Zaidi Adruce, Dean of the Cognitive Sciences and Human Development Faculty at UNIMAS, said the SSGP development would also create new economic activities in the rural areas.
Being built by Petronas at a cost of RM4.6 billion, the 512-km pipeline will transport gas from Kimanis in Sabah to the liquefied natural gas complex in Bintulu by end-2013.
Dr Shahren said its construction would mean that communities living along the pipeline would have more employment opportunities.
At the same time, the project would bring infrastructure amenities such as roads and telecommunications to these rural areas.
The spill-over effect of SSGP will be similar to the North-South Expressway in peninsular Malaysia in bringing economic growth, development in infrastructure and technology to enhance the people』s lives.
"Communities who live within a three-kilometre radius of the pipeline are those who will benefit most from this project.
"The project brings a lot of changes to the interior, especially in terms of infrastructure, to support the population』s basic needs and raise their standard of living," said Dr Shahren, who led the social impact research on communities living within the vicinity of the pipeline, stretching from Bintulu through Miri, Limbang and Lawas to Kimanis in Sabah.
The study, which commenced in 2007, had a sample size of 48 settlements and included focus-group interviews with the settlement』s population as well as non-governmental organisations.
Dr Shahren said some indigenous groups were at one time not supportive of the SSGP but later changed their mind when they "discovered that Petronas was not encroaching directly into some of the sensitive areas".
"Some of the areas in the pipeline project are very sacred to local communities. I am sure Petronas and the state government will look into this and solve the problem with the local communities.
"But, all in all, the local communities throughout the pipeline are giving positive support to this project," he said.
The SSGP is a part of the Petronas Sabah-Sarawak Integrated Oil and Gas Project to harness oil and gas resources in the offshore areas of Sabah and Sarawak.
