{
  "id": 7806893,
  "title": "Pelabuhan Bintulu kini bawah bidang kuasa Sarawak",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/16/pelabuhan-bintulu-kini-bawah-bidang-kuasa-sarawak",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-16T14:21:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Free Malaysia Today",
    "slug": "free-malaysia-today-freemalays",
    "url": "https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/bahasa/tempatan/2026/09/16/pelabuhan-bintulu-kini-bawah-bidang-kuasa-sarawak"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Perdana Menteri Anwar Ibrahim and Sarawak Premier Abang Johari Openg witnessed the symbolic handover of Pelabuhan Bintulu from the federal government to the Sarawak government on the same day. The ceremony took place at the Bilik Orang Kenamaan, Kuching International Airport, where Minister of Transport Loke Siew Fook represented the federal government and Deputy Premier Douglas Unggah Embas represented Sarawak. According to the Sarawak Infrastructure and Port Development Ministry, the handover involved four key documents - the Ports Port Authority (Demilitarisation) (Schedule Revision) 2026 and the Bintulu Port Authority (Demobilisation) (Deactivation) 2026 orders, as well as documents related to the designation of the date of strong authority under the Port Establishment Declaration Act Bintulu 2024 (Act 858) and the Bintulu Port Authority (Demobilisation) 2024 (Act 859) acts. With the strong authority of Act 858 and Act 859 coming into effect on September 1st last year, Pelabuhan Bintulu officially changed its status from a federal port to a state port under the jurisdiction of the Sarawak government. This transition also saw the disbanding of the Bintulu Port Authority (LPB) and the transfer of port-related responsibilities to the Bintulu Port Authority (Sarawak), a statutory body established under the Ports Authority Ordinance, 1961. Effective from September 1st, 2026, all assets, rights, interests, and obligations of LPB will be transferred and vested in the Sarawak government. The process of transferring Pelabuhan Bintulu took approximately three years, starting with the aspiration for transfer announced by Abang Johari in January 2023, which was approved by the Sarawak Cabinet in February of the same year. Approval for the transfer of Pelabuhan Bintulu was also announced by the Prime Minister during the 2024 Budget Announcement in Parliament on October 13th, 2023. Both governments then signed a memorandum of understanding in March 2024 before the legislation for Act 858 and Act 859 was passed in the House of Representatives in July 2024. In February last year, the federal government and Sarawak government reached an agreement on the transfer value of LPB amounting to RM1.8 billion. The final settlement agreement was signed in June 2026, followed by the handover ceremony from the federal government to the Sarawak government in Bintulu.",
  "summary": "Penyerahan rasmi pelabuhan daripada kerajaan persekutuan kepada kerajaan Sarawak disaksikan PM Anwar Ibrahim dan Premier Abang Johari Openg.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Free Malaysia Today",
        "title": "Pelabuhan Bintulu kini bawah bidang kuasa Sarawak",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/16/pelabuhan-bintulu-kini-bawah-bidang-kuasa-sarawak-7808080",
        "published": "2026-09-16T14:21:00.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}