SEREMBAN, MALAYSIA: Port Dickson will have a duty-free zone and a new Customs, Immigration and Quarantine complex after a multi-million ringgit land reclamation project is completed.

Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan said the facility would be similar to the one in Stulang Laut, Johor. The other tourist support facilities planned are a multi-purpose jetty, hotels, shopping complexes and office blocks.

"Since PD already has the necessary infrastructure, we hope this will further boost tourism and business.

"We need this project as there is no shopping complex in PD which is one of the top tourist spots in the country," he said in an interview at Wisma Negri.

The MB said that as land along the popular beach stretches had been taken up, the state had decided that the best spot for reclamation would be the Port Dickson town beach front.

He said a new jetty was necessary as the state government hoped to attract more tourists, particularly from Singapore and Indonesia.

"Since PD has already been earmarked as a wellness zone, we also want to help promote medical tourism," he said, adding that cruise ships could also dock at the jetty.

Mohamad said a firm had been commissioned to conduct an Environment Impact Assessment study for the project which would be privately financed.

"Our priority is the environment. In fact, one of the world's top petrochemical companies wanted to invest several billion ringgit here but we told them that we did not have the land they required.

"Also, we did not want to locate such a major petrochemical industry here," he said.

Mohamad said the project was also timely as the Federal Government had earmarked Seremban, Nilai and Port Dickson as the greater Klang Valley area.

"Since there isn't much space left in the Klang Valley, Negri Sembilan will benefit most from the spill-over effect." He said there were also plans to set up a corporatised body to promote tourism in Port Dickson.