Batu Kawan is an island and suburb of
Seberang Perai
Seberang Perai is a city in the Malaysian state of Penang. Located on the Malay Peninsula and separated from Penang Island by the Penang Strait, it shares borders with Kedah to the north and east and Perak to the south. The city spans an are ...
in the
Malaysian state
Malaysia is a federation of thirteen states and three federal territories, which form the primary administrative divisions of the country. Eleven states and two territories are part of Peninsular Malaysia, while two states and one territory ...
of
Penang
Penang is a Malaysian state located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia along the Strait of Malacca. It has two parts: Penang Island, where the capital city, George Town, is located, and Seberang Perai on the Malay Peninsula. Th ...
. It is geographically separated from the rest of Seberang Perai by the Jawi and Tengah rivers. , Batu Kawan contained a population of 11,409.
Long considered a quiet agricultural backwater, Batu Kawan is undergoing rapid development, which was sparked by the completion of the
Second Penang Bridge
The Sultan Abdul Halim Muadzam Shah Bridge (), also known as the Penang Second Bridge (), is a dual carriageway toll bridge in Penang, Malaysia. It connects Bandar Cassia (Batu Kawan) in Seberang Perai, Peninsular Malaysia, with Batu Maung on ...
that connects the town with
Batu Maung
Batu Maung is a residential neighbourhood in the States and federal territories of Malaysia, Malaysian state of Penang. It is located south of the Central George Town, Penang, city centre, adjacent to Bayan Lepas and the Penang International Airp ...
on
Penang Island
Penang Island is the main constituent island of the Malaysian state of Penang. It is located off the western coast of Peninsular Malaysia by the Malacca Strait, with the Penang Strait separating the island from Seberang Perai on the mainla ...
in 2014.
A host of multinational firms, including
Boston Scientific
Boston Scientific Corporation (BSC), headquartered in Marlborough, Massachusetts and incorporated in Delaware, is an American biotechnology and biomedical engineering firm and multinational manufacturer of medical devices used in interventional ...
,
Western Digital Corporation
Western Digital Corporation is an American data storage company headquartered in San Jose, California. Established in 1970, the company is one of the world's largest manufacturers of Hard disk drive, hard disk drives (HDDs).
History
1970s
...
,
Bose Corporation
Bose Corporation () is an American manufacturing company that predominantly sells audio equipment. The company was established by Amar Bose in 1964 and is based in Framingham, Massachusetts. It is best known for its Home audio, home audio syste ...
,
Dexcom
DexCom, Inc. is an American healthcare company that develops, manufactures, produces, and distributes a line of continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) systems for diabetes management. It operates internationally with headquarters in San Diego, Cal ...
and
Bosch, have set up manufacturing plants within the Batu Kawan Industrial Park.
In addition, Batu Kawan is home to
Design Village, Malaysia's largest
outlet mall
An outlet store, factory outlet or factory store is a brick and mortar or online store where manufacturers sell their merchandise directly to the public. Products at outlet stores are usually sold at reduced prices compared to regular stores du ...
.
Among the ongoing developments within Batu Kawan are an
IKEA
IKEA ( , ) is a Multinational corporation, multinational conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in Sweden that designs and sells , household goods, and various related services.
IKEA is owned and operated by a series of not-for-profit an ...
store, Aspen Vision City and Utropolis, the latter of which is expected to serve as a hub for tertiary education.
History
The agricultural village of Batu Kawan had been in existence since the 19th century, when the area was home to sugar, coconut and rubber estates.
In particular, sugar plantations in the area had been run by Chinese settlers as early as 1796. Granite was extracted from the area as well; the granite was then sent across the
Penang Strait
The Penang Strait is an 11 kilometre-wide strait that separates Penang Island from mainland Malay Peninsula. Penang Island is to the west of the channel, while Seberang Perai, the mainland half of the State of Penang, is to the east. The northe ...
to
George Town on
tongkang
Tongkang or "Tong'kang" refers to several type of boats used to carry goods along rivers and shoreline in Maritime Southeast Asia. One of the earliest record of tongkang has a background of 14th century, being mentioned in Malay Annals which was ...
s departing from the Batu Musang Jetty.
In the 1960s, the aforementioned plantations were cleared to make way for larger palm oil estates.
In 1990, the
Penang Development Corporation
The Penang Development Corporation ( PDC) is a state-owned economic development corporation in the Malaysian state of Penang. Established in 1969, it serves as the primary development agency of Penang, responsible for planning and implementing de ...
(PDC), a statutory body of the
Penang state government, acquired of land in Batu Kawan.
The
Penang State Stadium
State of Penang Stadium ( Malay: ''Stadium Negeri Pulau Pinang'') is a multi-purpose stadium in Batu Kawan, South Seberang Perai, Penang, Malaysia. It is currently used mostly for football matches. The stadium has a capacity of 40,000 peopl ...
, completed in 2000, was one of the first development projects undertaken by the PDC, followed by the Batu Kawan Industrial Park and the Penang Science Park.
In 2008, the
Malaysian federal government
The Government of Malaysia, officially the Federal Government of Malaysia (; Jawi: ), is based in the Federal Territory of Putrajaya, with the exception of the legislative branch, which is located in Kuala Lumpur. Malaysia is a federation comp ...
commenced the construction of the
Second Penang Bridge
The Sultan Abdul Halim Muadzam Shah Bridge (), also known as the Penang Second Bridge (), is a dual carriageway toll bridge in Penang, Malaysia. It connects Bandar Cassia (Batu Kawan) in Seberang Perai, Peninsular Malaysia, with Batu Maung on ...
, which links Batu Kawan with
Batu Maung
Batu Maung is a residential neighbourhood in the States and federal territories of Malaysia, Malaysian state of Penang. It is located south of the Central George Town, Penang, city centre, adjacent to Bayan Lepas and the Penang International Airp ...
on
Penang Island
Penang Island is the main constituent island of the Malaysian state of Penang. It is located off the western coast of Peninsular Malaysia by the Malacca Strait, with the Penang Strait separating the island from Seberang Perai on the mainla ...
.
The completion of the bridge in 2014 proved to be a catalyst to Batu Kawan's contemporary development, with the town being touted as "''Penang's third satellite township''" after
Bayan Baru
Bayan Baru is a neighbourhood of George Town, Penang, George Town in the States and federal territories of Malaysia, Malaysian state of Penang. Located south of the Central George Town, Penang, city centre, it lies within the suburb of Bayan Lepa ...
on the island and
Seberang Jaya
Seberang Jaya is a suburb of Seberang Perai in the Malaysian state of Penang. Located at the southern bank of the Perai River and east of Perai proper, the area was developed in the 1970s. Since then, Seberang Jaya has evolved into a booming area ...
in
Central Seberang Perai
The Central Seberang Perai District is a district in Seberang Perai within the Malaysian state of Penang. The district covers the central third of Seberang Perai. It borders Northern Seberang Perai to the north, Kedah
Kedah (), also know ...
.
In 2012, the PDC launched the
Bandar Cassia
Batu Kawan is an island and suburb of Seberang Perai in the States and federal territories of Malaysia, Malaysian state of Penang. It is geographically separated from the rest of Seberang Perai by the Jawi and Tengah rivers. , Batu Kawan contained ...
residential development, which is modelled after
Singapore
Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...
's
Housing and Development Board
The Housing & Development Board (HDB; often referred to as the Housing Board; ; ; ), is a Statutory boards of the Singapore Government, statutory board under the Ministry of National Development (Singapore), Ministry of National Developmen ...
schemes.
This was soon followed by larger property developments, such as Utropolis and Aspen Vision City.
In 2015, the Penang state government declared the launch of a new development corridor within the
South Seberang Perai District
The South Seberang Perai District is a district in Seberang Perai within the Malaysian state of Penang. The district covers the southern third of Seberang Perai. It borders Central Seberang Perai to the north, Kedah to the east and Perak to the ...
, which encompasses Batu Kawan and
Nibong Tebal
Nibong Tebal is a suburb of Seberang Perai in the Malaysian state of Penang. Located at the northern bank of the Kerian River within the Southern Seberang Perai District, it is the southernmost populated place of Penang. Nibong Tebal containe ...
.
Geography
Batu Kawan forms an island off
Seberang Perai
Seberang Perai is a city in the Malaysian state of Penang. Located on the Malay Peninsula and separated from Penang Island by the Penang Strait, it shares borders with Kedah to the north and east and Perak to the south. The city spans an are ...
; it is physically cut off from the mainland by the Jawi River to the north and the Tengah River to the south. The suburb neighbours
Bukit Minyak (in
Central Seberang Perai District
The Central Seberang Perai District is a district in Seberang Perai within the Malaysian state of Penang. The district covers the central third of Seberang Perai. It borders Northern Seberang Perai to the north, Kedah
Kedah (), also known ...
) to the north,
Bukit Tambun
Bukit Tambun is a suburb of Seberang Perai in the Malaysian state of Penang
Penang is a Malaysian state located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia along the Strait of Malacca. It has two parts: Penang Island, where the capita ...
to the east and
Sungai Jawi to the south.
Demographics
, Mukim 13, the subdivision that contains Batu Kawan, was home to a population of 11,409.
Malays formed 60% of the population, followed by
Indians
Indian or Indians may refer to:
Associated with India
* of or related to India
** Indian people
** Indian diaspora
** Languages of India
** Indian English, a dialect of the English language
** Indian cuisine
Associated with indigenous peoples o ...
at 18% and
Chinese
Chinese may refer to:
* Something related to China
* Chinese people, people identified with China, through nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity
**Han Chinese, East Asian ethnic group native to China.
**'' Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic ...
at 15%.
Transportation

Lebuhraya Bandar Cassia is the main expressway within Batu Kawan. The highway is, in turn, linked to the
North–South Expressway, which passes by the town.
The
Second Penang Bridge
The Sultan Abdul Halim Muadzam Shah Bridge (), also known as the Penang Second Bridge (), is a dual carriageway toll bridge in Penang, Malaysia. It connects Bandar Cassia (Batu Kawan) in Seberang Perai, Peninsular Malaysia, with Batu Maung on ...
, which links Batu Kawan with
Batu Maung
Batu Maung is a residential neighbourhood in the States and federal territories of Malaysia, Malaysian state of Penang. It is located south of the Central George Town, Penang, city centre, adjacent to Bayan Lepas and the Penang International Airp ...
on
Penang Island
Penang Island is the main constituent island of the Malaysian state of Penang. It is located off the western coast of Peninsular Malaysia by the Malacca Strait, with the Penang Strait separating the island from Seberang Perai on the mainla ...
, spans a total length of , making it the longest bridge in
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, southeastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of China, east of the Indian subcontinent, and northwest of the Mainland Au ...
at the time of its completion, a title that has since been taken up by the
Sultan Haji Omar Ali Saifuddien Bridge
Sultan Haji Omar 'Ali Saifuddien Bridge (, Jawi: ), also known as Temburong Bridge (, Jawi: ), is a dual-carriageway bridge in Brunei that spans across Brunei Bay, connecting the Bruneian mainland with its semi-exclave of Temburong District. I ...
. The completion of the bridge in 2014 also brought about the rapid development of Batu Kawan.
The bridge is a
tolled expressway, with a toll plaza situated at the entrance of the bridge in Batu Kawan.
Batu Kawan is used to serve by
Rapid Penang
Rapid Penang (stylised as ''rapidPenang'') is a public bus brand operating within the George Town Conurbation in Malaysia. Established in 2007 as a subsidiary of Prasarana Malaysia, it serves as the main public transport system within the sta ...
's Congestion Alleviation Transport (CAT), a free-of-charge transit bus service within Batu Kawan. However this service have ceased operations since the pandemic in 2020, making Batu Kawan is inaccessible via normal public transportation methods other than e-hailing or taxi.
Education
Batu Kawan is served by two
primary school
A primary school (in Ireland, India, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, South Africa, and Singapore), elementary school, or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ...
s and one
high school
A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., ...
.
Primary schools
* SRK Batu Kawan
* SRJK (T) Ladang Batu Kawan
High schools
* SMK Batu Kawan
A number of tertiary institutions have planned to establish their campuses within Batu Kawan as well, including
University of Hull
The University of Hull is a public research university in Kingston upon Hull, a city in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It was founded in 1927 as University College Hull. The main university campus is located in Hull and is home to the Hu ...
,
KDU University College
University of Wollongong Malaysia (Formerly known as KDU University College) is a private university in Malaysia, with its campus in Utropolis Glenmarie, Shah Alam. Established in 1983, and a pioneer in Malaysian private education, UOW Malay ...
and Peninsula College.
In particular, the KDU University campus, scheduled for completion by 2018, will be the largest tertiary institution within Batu Kawan.
Sports
The
Penang State Stadium
State of Penang Stadium ( Malay: ''Stadium Negeri Pulau Pinang'') is a multi-purpose stadium in Batu Kawan, South Seberang Perai, Penang, Malaysia. It is currently used mostly for football matches. The stadium has a capacity of 40,000 peopl ...
, completed in 2000, is the main sporting stadium of the
State of Penang and the home ground of the state's football association,
Penang FA
Penang Football Club (simply known as Penang FC) is a Malaysian professional football club based in George Town, Penang, that competes in Malaysia Super League, the top tier of Malaysian football.
Unofficially founded in 1920, officially as ...
. The stadium, which has a capacity of 40,000, also played host to national-level sporting events, such as the
2000 Sukma Games
The Sukma Games (, lit.: Malaysian Games) is a biennial national multi-sport event involving young athletes from Malaysia's 13 states and 3 Federal Territories. The games are regulated by the National Sports Council of Malaysia, the state spor ...
.
Retail
Opened in 2016,
Design Village, with a built-up area of , is the biggest
outlet mall
An outlet store, factory outlet or factory store is a brick and mortar or online store where manufacturers sell their merchandise directly to the public. Products at outlet stores are usually sold at reduced prices compared to regular stores du ...
in Malaysia. Among the tenants within the mall are
Gap,
Timberland,
Pierre Cardin
Pierre Cardin (born Pietro Costante Cardin; 2 July 1922 – 29 December 2020) was an Italian-born naturalised-French fashion designer. He is known for what were his avant-garde style and Space Age designs. He preferred geometry, geometric shap ...
,
Sacoor Brothers,
Superdry
Superdry plc (stylised as SUPERDRY®︎冒険魂) is a British clothing company, and owner of the Superdry label. Superdry products traditionally combine vintage Americana (culture), American styling with Japanese-inspired graphics.
Founded ...
,
Kate Spade New York
Kate Spade New York (stylized as kate spade NEW YORK) is an Culture of the United States, American fashion house founded in January 1993 by Kate Spade, Kate and Andy Spade. In 2017, the company was purchased by Tapestry, Inc., formerly known a ...
,
Padini
Padini Holdings Berhad is an investment holding company based in Malaysia that sells shoes, garments, ancillary products, children’s garments, maternity wear, and accessories through its various subsidiaries. Its most notable brands are Padini ...
,
Adidas
Adidas AG (; stylized in all lowercase since 1949) is a German athletic apparel and footwear corporation headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, Germany. It is the largest sportswear manufacturer in Europe, and the second largest in the ...
,
Body Glove
Body Glove is an American brand of watersports apparel and accessories that was founded in 1953 by twin brothers Bill and Bob Meistrell. The brothers are often credited with inventing the first practical wetsuit in the early 1950s at the back o ...
,
Levi's
Levi Strauss & Co. ( ) is an American clothing company known worldwide for its Levi's ( ) brand of denim jeans. It was founded in May 1853 when German-Jewish immigrant Levi Strauss moved from Buttenheim, Bavaria, to San Francisco, California, ...
,
Guess
Guessing is the act of drawing a swift conclusion, called a guess, from data directly at hand, which is then held as probable or tentative, while the person making the guess (the guesser) admittedly lacks material for a greater degree of certaint ...
,
Samsonite
Samsonite International S.A. is an American Baggage, luggage manufacturer and retailer, with products ranging from large suitcases to small toiletries bags and briefcases. The company was founded in 1910 in Denver, Colorado, Denver, Colorado, U ...
,
Esprit and
Cotton On
Cotton On Group is an Australian retail company known for its fashion, clothing and stationery brands. As of 2020, it has over 1,500 stores in 18 countries employing 22,000 people across eight brands: Cotton On, Cotton On Kids, Cotton On Body, ...
.
In 2017, the construction of the IKEA Batu Kawan store was launched by the
Chief Minister of Penang
The chief minister of Penang is the head of government in the Malaysian state of Penang. According to convention, the chief minister is the leader of the majority party or largest coalition party of the Penang State Legislative Assembly. The ch ...
,
Lim Guan Eng
Lim Guan Eng (; born 8 December 1960) is a Malaysian politician and accountant who served as the Minister of Finance of Malaysia from 2018 to 2020. A member of the Democratic Action Party (DAP), he has served as the party's second advisor si ...
.
Slated for completion by 2019, it is the first
IKEA
IKEA ( , ) is a Multinational corporation, multinational conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in Sweden that designs and sells , household goods, and various related services.
IKEA is owned and operated by a series of not-for-profit an ...
store in northern Malaysia and spans a built-up area of .
Infrastructure
The
Batu Kawan Industrial Park encompasses the southern portion of Batu Kawan and is bounded by the
Second Penang Bridge
The Sultan Abdul Halim Muadzam Shah Bridge (), also known as the Penang Second Bridge (), is a dual carriageway toll bridge in Penang, Malaysia. It connects Bandar Cassia (Batu Kawan) in Seberang Perai, Peninsular Malaysia, with Batu Maung on ...
to the north. The industrial zone has attracted a host of multinational firms, such as
Boston Scientific
Boston Scientific Corporation (BSC), headquartered in Marlborough, Massachusetts and incorporated in Delaware, is an American biotechnology and biomedical engineering firm and multinational manufacturer of medical devices used in interventional ...
,
Bose Corporation
Bose Corporation () is an American manufacturing company that predominantly sells audio equipment. The company was established by Amar Bose in 1964 and is based in Framingham, Massachusetts. It is best known for its Home audio, home audio syste ...
,
Bosch,
ViTrox,
Western Digital
Western Digital Corporation is an American data storage company headquartered in San Jose, California. Established in 1970, the company is one of the world's largest manufacturers of hard disk drives (HDDs).
History
1970s
Western Digital ...
,
Dexcom
DexCom, Inc. is an American healthcare company that develops, manufactures, produces, and distributes a line of continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) systems for diabetes management. It operates internationally with headquarters in San Diego, Cal ...
and
Hewlett-Packard
The Hewlett-Packard Company, commonly shortened to Hewlett-Packard ( ) or HP, was an American multinational information technology company. It was founded by Bill Hewlett and David Packard in 1939 in a one-car garage in Palo Alto, California ...
.
In addition, a gold and jewellery hub is being built within the industrial park.
The major residential developments within Batu Kawan include
Aspen Vision City and
Utropolis@Batu Kawan, undertaken by
Aspen Group and
Paramount Property respectively.
The former includes a financial hub, a
Columbia Asia
Columbia Asia is a multinational chain of hospitals and one of the largest and fastest-growing healthcare companies in Southeast Asia. Columbia Asia started its operations in 1996, with the first hospital acquired a year later in Sarawak, Ea ...
hospital, an international school and other commercial properties, whilst the latter consists of the campus of
KDU University College
University of Wollongong Malaysia (Formerly known as KDU University College) is a private university in Malaysia, with its campus in Utropolis Glenmarie, Shah Alam. Established in 1983, and a pioneer in Malaysian private education, UOW Malay ...
and various other properties.
Other ongoing projects within the town include the EcoHorizon residential development by EcoWorld.
In an effort to promote environmental conservation, all development projects within the town are required to abide by a 30% green area ruling, enacted by the
Seberang Perai City Council
The Seberang Perai City Council ( ) is the local government that administers the city of Seberang Perai, which encompasses the mainland half of the Malaysian state of Penang. The city council, which has jurisdiction over an area of , falls under ...
.
Bandar Cassia
Bandar Cassia or Cassia City is a township in Batu Kawan. The township was developed by the Penang Development Corporation (PDC, PERDA) in 1993.
References
{{Greater Penang Conurbation
South Seberang Perai District
Towns in Penang