SkyGate NHJ commits US$30mil to a 36,000 sq ft plant in the Perai Free Industrial Zone
- SkyGate NHJ Technology opened a roughly 36,000 sq ft precision machining facility in the Perai Free Industrial Zone on 4 September 2026, officiated by Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow.
- Investment is US$30 million (about RM121 million) in two equal phases: five-axis and automated horizontal machining lines with a central tool magazine first, then automated machining and inspection of large semiconductor components with digital twin and AI.
- The venture was formed on 14 July 2025 between a subsidiary of Penang-based SkyGate Solutions Berhad and Singapore-based New Jin Hai Pte Ltd — the “NHJ” in the name.
- Fastems chief executive Mikko Nyman and Finland’s Maiju Lepomäki attended, which explains the automation: Fastems is the Finnish maker of the flexible manufacturing systems and central tool magazines described in phase one.
- Derived: about US$833 (RM3,358) of investment per sq ft of facility — equipment, not building cost — with roughly RM1.21 million per job across 100-plus jobs and about 360 sq ft of floor per worker.
A Malaysia–Singapore joint venture has opened a 36,000 sq ft precision machining plant in the Perai Free Industrial Zone, and committed US$30 million (about RM121 million) to fill it with automation over two phases.
SkyGate NHJ Technology Sdn Bhd opened the facility on 4 September 2026, with Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow officiating. Chief executive Li Jian said the money splits evenly:
- Phase one — US$15 million: a five-axis automated production line, an automated horizontal machining centre line with a central tool magazine, and multi-tasking turning and milling machines
- Phase two — US$15 million: automated machining and inspection of large semiconductor components, plus digital twin technology and AI applications
The plant is expected to create more than 100 technical jobs and, once fully invested, to generate annual sales of up to US$25 million (about RM101 million).
Who is actually behind it
The venture was formed on 14 July 2025 between a subsidiary of Penang-based SkyGate Solutions Berhad and Singapore-based New Jin Hai Pte Ltd — which is what “NHJ” stands for. New Jin Hai brings more than three decades in ultra-precision components, thin-walled and complex-geometry parts.
The Finnish guest explains the machinery. Alongside the Chief Minister and MIDA chief executive Datuk Sikh Shamsul Ibrahim Sikh Abdul Majid, the guest list included Maiju Lepomäki of the Embassy of Finland and Mikko Nyman, chief executive of Fastems. Fastems is the Finnish builder of flexible manufacturing systems — robotic pallet handling and central tool magazines that let a machine shop run unattended overnight. That is precisely the “automated horizontal machining centre line with a central tool magazine” in phase one. Also present were state exco member YB H’ng Mooi Lye, SkyGate’s Tay Seng Chew and Goh Kiang Teng, SkyGate NHJ chief operating officer Yeoh Hooi Chong, and SkyGate Solutions executive chairman Tan Heng Chew.
View the Perai Free Industrial Zone on Google Maps
The numbers, and what they say
A tenant spending RM121 million to equip 36,000 sq ft is a tenant who will not move: relocating a Fastems-automated machining line means re-levelling foundations, re-qualifying every part number and months of lost output. It is the same stickiness argument as medtech, arriving in a different sector.
Two more ratios worth keeping: about RM1.21 million of investment per job. And target sales of US$25 million against US$30 million invested is a 0.83x sales-to-capital ratio, which is normal for precision machining and tells you this is a long-payback business, not a quick fit-out.
And it is another vote for the ecosystem argument. Li Jian said Penang was chosen for its “Silicon Valley of the East” reputation, its industrial infrastructure and supply chains, citing more than 350 multinationals and over 4,000 manufacturing-related businesses. Chow framed the venture as offering “technology transfer, localisation and the development of new capabilities” — the same localisation theme running through Penang’s record RM17.3 billion first half.
*Photos: Muhammad Iqbal Hamdan/Buletin Mutiara. Google Maps link points at the Perai Free Industrial Zone generally, not the specific unit.*
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