INVESTMENT and economic opportunities are set to grow in Kota Tinggi district, thanks to the Integrated Sustainable Palm Oil Complex (iSPOC) project led by Johor Plantations Group Bhd.
Johor Mentri Besar Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi said the project in Tanjung Sedili was expected to create 250 jobs with a focus on developing local talents.
“The project will also drive research and development through its Centre of Excellence,” he said during the groundbreaking ceremony at Johor Plantations’ Pasir Gogok estate.
Onn Hafiz said the project would spur industries such as food production and green technologies, and was regarded as a key enabler of the Maju Johor 2030 vision to foster sustainable economic development.
“This project reflects the company’s leadership in sustainable palm oil and supports our vision for the new economy.”
Onn Hafiz said job creation, economic activity and cultivation of a skilled workforce would support Johor’s industrial growth.
The complex, he said, was among core projects in the company’s 10-year roadmap to drive strategy in expanding downstream activities into speciality oils and fats production.
He added that iSPOC would build on the success of Johor Plantations’ Smallholder Inclusion Programme that benefitted 289 state smallholders by improving their access to Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil certification and market opportunities.
Meanwhile, Johor Plantations chairman Tan Sri Dr Ismail Bakar said the complex was scheduled for commissioning in the third quarter of 2026.
The state-of-the art integrated complex houses a speciality oils and fats refinery, a palm oil mill, a palm kernel plant, an animal feed mill and a research and development centre.
The iSPOC is the first facility of its kind to embrace a circular economy model.
It will maximise the use of resource by creating renewable energy from biomass and biogas that are by-products of the palm oil mill.
The project is a joint venture with Fuji Oil Asia Pte Ltd.
