The file photo shows the scene of the Strait of Malacca in Malaysia. [Photo: cntingshu.net]

Three Chinese companies have been selected to help build a new deep-water port in the Strait of Malacca in Malaysia.

The project is part of the Chinese government's broader "belt and road" initiative.

PowerChina International, Shenzhen's Yantian Port Group and Rizhao Port Group have been selected to help a Malaysian company build the 1.9-billion US dollar port.

The project itself is part of the larger Melaka Gateway Project that China and Malaysia signed last month, which also includes real estate projects in Malaysia.

Malaysian Transport Minister Liow Tiong Lai says the new port is being built on a critical waterway.

"On an annual basis, over nearly 100,000 vessels ply the Straits of Malacca as its strategic location is part of the east-west maritime gateway. So clearly, there is a significant opportunity and potential for growth."

The main tender for the port project is Malaysian firm KAJ Development.

Once completed, the company says the port will also contain a liquid cargo terminal which will be able to hold fuel, chemical products and vegetable oil.

At the same time, as part of the Melaka Gateway Project, a number of Malaysian companies and the Provincial government in Guangdong are planning on developing the island of Pulau Melaka into a maritime activities center.

It will include a bulk container terminal, ship repair services and a maritime industrial park.

China's ambassador to Malaysia, Huang Huikang, says the joint project will be a major hub on the "Belt and Road."

"Melaka Gateway and Melaka Maritime Industrial Park could serve as a model for cooperation between China and Malaysia, and for all countries interested in taking part in the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road initiative."

The development of the Melaka Gateway Project is slated to be complete by 2025.

The port is due to be operational 6-years earlier, in 2019.