Originally published on October 16, 2013
Plans for a bridge that will span the Straits of Malacca have been revived after being stalled for seven years, according to The Star.
The bridge will connect Teluk Gong in Malaysia with Dumai in Indonesia. The Malaysia portion will run 48.69 km, making it the longest sea bridge in the world. The bridge will link with a 71.2 km-long highway on the Indonesia side.
It was reported in the Malaysian Insider that the Export-Import Bank of China is ready to cover 85 percent of the estimated US$12.5 billion it will cost to construct the bridge.
Plans for the bridge were initially discussed in 2006, but were greatly opposed by environmentalists who were concerned that the bridge would damage the straits' ecosystem. Among potential threats to the environment, the construction of the bridge on the Malaysia side would disturb an important nesting area of the hawksbill turtle.
Interest in the project was renewed during the 10th Chief Ministers and Governors Forum of the Indonesia-Malaysia-Thailand Growth Triangle which was held on September 12 in Thailand.
Supporters of the proposed bridge believe the cross-straits structure will encourage trade and growth between the two countries, according to reports. However, according to an editorial in the Malaysian Insider by academic Mohd Hazmi Mohd Rusli, some believe Indonesia has little to gain from the link, as the port in question has few direct connections to major Indonesian cities.
The straits are one of the world's busiest international shipping waterway, with more than 70,000 vessels travelling through it annually, including almost half of the world's oil shipments.
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