Bintulu

Infobox city
official_name = Bintulu
nickname = Oil Town
website = http://www.bda.gov.my


imagesize = 360px
pushpin_

pushpin_label_position = left
pushpin_map_caption =
pushpin_mapsize =360
subdivision_type = Country
State
subdivision_name = flag|Malaysia
Sarawak
established_title = Establishment
established_date = Uncertain

leader_title = Mayor
leader_name = Tuan Hj. Mohidin Ishak [ [http://www.bda.gov.my/aboutbda/organization.htm BDA General Manager] ]
area_magnitude = 1 E8
area_total_sq_mi = 1,563
area_total_km2 = 2,515
population_as_of = 2007
population_total = 180,000 (the fourth largest urban areas in Sarawak)
population_density_sq_mi = uncalculate
population_density_km2 = uncalculated
national_calling_code = +6086
timezone = MST
utc_offset = +8
timezone_DST = Not observed
latd = 3
latm = 8
lats = 00
latNS = N
longd = 113
longm = 2
longs = 43
longEW = E

Bintulu is a coastal town, and the capital of Bintulu District (7,220.4 square kilometers) in the Bintulu Division of Sarawak, Malaysia. It is about 650 kilometers from Kuching and about 215 kilometers from either Sibu or Miri.

Some remnants of natural rainforest still exist near Bintulu despite the impact of the booming logging industry and the gradual encroachment of plantations, principally of oil palm and pulpwood, the latter mainly comprising various species of acacia and eucalyptus.

Bintulu is a major industrial centre. Its port area to the east of the main town hosts the Petronas Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) Complex, currently the world’s largest liquefied natural gas production facility on a single site, with an annual production of 23 million tonnes. [http://www.petronas.com.my]

The town is geographically situated half way between Kuching and Kota Kinabalu. Bintulu is a central gateway to tourist spots like Bakun Resort, Niah Caves (Gua Niah in Malay), Mulu National Park, Longan Bunut National Park, Lambir National Park, Sibuti Wildlife Sanctuary, Rejang Pelagus, Belaga and the Bario Highlands.Bintulu is accessible by air and road. The completion of the Pan-Borneo Highway has connected Bintulu by road to other major towns in Sarawak. Bintulu Airport is located 5.5 km south west of the town and is equipped to handle aircraft up to the size of a Boeing 737. [http://www.malaysiaairports.com.my/index.php?ch=17&pg=55&ac=188] As a booming industrial town, Bintulu has been undergone rapid transformations lately. The economic growth of Bintulu is reflected by the sprawling construction area and the openings of several international fast food chains in the town area. New houses are currently constructed in the suburban areas to cushion the increasing population of the town. The rapid growth of the town's population, coupled with the increasing affluence of its people has catapulted the recent retail boom that the town is witnessing. New mall and supermarkets are the testaments of this.

However, the rapid urbanisation that Bintulu is facing has also led to the growth of the squatter's settlements and slums that surround the town's industrial area. The most notable is the slum area around the Sungai Plan area. The squatters' settlements are generally inhabited by the migrant workers who came from either the rural areas or the neighbouring countries (notably Indonesia). However, the local authority has made significant efforts in tackling this problem by building units of low-cost homes, the most notable being the RPR Kidurong low-cost housing development.

The role of the primary sector to the economy of Bintulu has greatly diminished and has been replaced by the secondary and tertiary sector. Bintulu is also equipped with several hotels that are able to cater to the needs of the town's burgeoning business communities. Furthermore, a more robust growth is anticipated in the future due to the Bintulu's position as the main urban focus for the ambitious multi-billion dollar SCORE economic corridor.

History

The history of Bintulu stretched back to 40,000 years ago with the discovery of relics found in the Great Niah Caves, some 120 km to the North of Bintulu where civilization started. There were also indications of early trade carried out with ancient China.

Bintulu was once under the rule of the Brunei Sultanate. However, in 1841, Sarawak was ceded to Sir James Brooke, an English adventurer who then became the First Rajah of Sarawak. In 1861, Bintulu, which was still part of Brunei, was also ceded to the Rajah and became part of Sarawak.

Situated close to Brunei, Bintulu played a very significant role in the history of democracy in Sarawak. On September 8, 1867, it became the first meeting place of the State Legislative Assembly, the Council Negeri. The Brooke family had ruled Sarawak for about 100 years before it was occupied by the Japanese between 1941 to 1945. When Charles Vyner Brooke, the Rajah, returned to Sarawak in 1946, he took steps to hand over Sarawak to Britain. Thus in July, 1946, Sarawak became a British Crown Colony. Colonial rule lasted until July 22, 1963 and then on September 16, 1963 Sarawak joined the Federation of Malaysia.

Following the discovery of large reserves of natural gas offshore Bintulu in 1969, a feasibility study conducted in 1975 found in nearby Tanjung Kidurong a suitable site for Sarawak's first deep-water port.

Realising the industrial potential in Bintulu, the Bintulu Development Authority (BDA) was established in 1978 by the State Government to undertake infrastructure development as well as to coordinate and promote industrial investment in the area.

From 1979 onwards, Bintulu has witnessed unprecedented industrial development that looks set to continue beyond the year 2000. Already, Bintulu is Sarawak's leading industrial growth centre.

Demographic

Bintulu is the fourth largest town in Sarawak, after Kuching city, Miri city and Sibu town. Its current population stands at 209,800 [Department of Statistic, 2007. Malaysia)] . The ethnic composition is primarily Iban, Chinese, Malay, Kayan, Kenyah, Punan and Segaan who was the local native, and a large number of foreign workers mainly from Norway, Britain, Australia, Italy and Indonesia with a population of over 180,000 covering an area of about 12,500 square kilometers.

However the number of voters in Bintulu is still low. During last March 8, 2008 Malaysia General Election, Bintulu has only about 50,243 registered voters against its total population of more than 180,000. [It's a hatrick for Tiong in Bintulu. http://www.bintulu.org accessed on 25 March. 2008] Ibans make up the largest number of voters of 46 percent, followed by the Chinese voters (29 percent), the oddly classified Malay/Melanaus voters (22 percent) and others (which include Punan, Penan and Kayan) make up 3 percent of the voters.

Education

Bintulu is home to one of Malaysia public university - the Universiti Putra Malaysia, Bintulu Campus. The campus was reopened in November 2001 based on the third objective of UPM's 2001-2010 planning strategy, which is to upgrade UPM's ability as an internationally acclaimed Centre of Study, Agricultural and Biosource Services.

UPM Bintulu Sarawak Campus is situated 13 kilometers from Bintulu Town, and is surrounded by a lush environment rich in flora and fauna, and this natural abundance is fully utilized to affirm UPM's mission to further explore the fields in agriculture and biosource. This campus covers an area of 715.16 hectares and will be able to accommodate up to 5000 students by the year 2010.

For primary and secondary education, just as any other towns in Malaysia, Bintulu has 'Sekolah Kebangsaan' (National type schools), Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan (SMK (National Secondary School)), Chinese Schools and several International Schools. The most popular school in Bintulu is Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Bintulu (Bintulu National Secondary School), or better known by the locals as SMK Bintulu. SMK Bintulu is the largest secondary school in Sarawak, and also has the largest amount of students. SMK Bintulu receives a lot of foreign students each year, mainly from Norway, Australia, Britain, Indonesia, Singapore, Brunei and Italy, making it a well-known school in Sarawak. There are other National Secondary School, i.e SMK Kidurong, SMK Bandar Bintulu, SMK Assyakirin, SMK Sebauh (Sebauh Division) & SMK Tatau (Tatau Division). SM Kai Dee (Kai Dee School) is a well-known private chinese school in Bintulu & located at Nyabau Road. Kidurong International School is located in Kidurong.

A Technical School of the Education Department is found on a 20-hectare site, about 15 kilometres from the Bintulu Town and near to the industrial projects at Tanjung Kidurong. Built at a cost of RM15 million and completed in 1982, the school has at present 527 students pursuing various courses at the school. The school has a maximum capacity of 900 students and an annual intake of 280 students. The various courses offered are as follows:-

* Automotive
* Building Construction
* Commerce
* Electrical Installation & Maintenance
* Fashion & Design
* Stenography
* Welding & Electronic
* Mechanical
* Catering
* Civil Engineering
* Electrical and Electronic Engineering
* Motor Vehicle Mechanical
* Domestic Industrial Electrician

Transportation

Air links
Bintulu is accessible by air and road. The completion of the Pan-Borneo Highway has connected Bintulu by road to other major towns in Sarawak. Bintulu Airport is located 5.5 km south west of the town and is equipped to handle aircraft up to the size of a Boeing 737 [Boeing 737. [http://www.malaysiaairports.com.my/index.php?ch=17&pg=55&ac=188] ]

The new, modern Bintulu Airport is much bigger than the old airport. Malaysia Airlines (including its subsidiary MASWing) and AirAsia are the only airlines that fly to Bintulu. Malaysia Airlines and AirAsia operates daily flights to various destinations in the country which include Kuching, Miri, Kota Kinabalu and Kuala Lumpur.

However only Malaysia Airlines and AirAsia has daily flights from Kuala Lumpur to Bintulu currently.

Land
Bintulu is well-connected to other major urban centres in Sarawak by the Pan-Borneo Highway. The express bus services provide comfortable and cheap means of transportation all of the major towns in Sarawak. The Medan Jaya Bus Station is the Bintulu's single centre for the intercity bus services.Bintulu is also served by the comfortable intracity buses whose routes serve a significant portion of the town area. All buses are air-conditioned.

Financial Services

Almost all Malaysian major banks and finance companies have their branches in Bintulu

1. Maybank
2. CIMB Bank
3. Bank Muamalat
5. EON Bank
6. Bank Islam
7. Public Bank
8. RHB Bank
9. Affin Bank
10. Bank Rakyat
11. AM Bank

Foreign banks include - HSBC Bank, Standard & Chartered Bank, Hwang DBS Investment Bank, Leong Bank

Accommodations

There are several hotels and budget hotels in Bintulu. The new hotel is the New World Suites located at ParkCity Commercial area, Tanjung Batu. Below are the links to these hotels.

*cite web |url=http://www.hoteltravel.com/malaysia/sarawak/parkcity.htm |title=Parkcity Everly Hotel, Bintulu |accessdate=2007-04-12 |format= |work=
*cite web |url=http://www.theregencyhotel.com.my/plazabintulu/ |title=Regency Plaza Hotel, Bintulu |accessdate=2007-04-12 |format= |work=
*cite web |url=http://edition.bintulu.org/index.php/travel/hotels/175-new-world-suites-the-newest-hotel-in-bintulu |title=New World Suite Hotel, Bintulu |accessdate=2008-03-24 |format= |work=

References

External links

*cite web |url=http://www.petronas.com.my |title=Petronas website |accessdate=2007-04-12 |format= |work=
*cite web |url=http://www.malaysiaairports.com.my/index.php?ch=17&pg=55&ac=188 |title=Malaysia Airports website |accessdate=2007-04-13 |format= |work=
*cite web |url=http://www.bda.gov.my/ |title=Bintulu Development Authority |accessdate=2007-07-24 |format= |work=
*cite web |url=http://www.bintulu.org/ |title=Bintulu.Org - Bintulu News & Info |accessdate=2008-03-24 |format= |work=