Tanjung Tualang Tin Dredge

The Tanjung Tualang Tin Dredge No. 5 or TT5 is a former tin mining dredge in Batu Gajah, Perak. It is a relic from Malaysia’s tin mining heydays. The dredge was built in England in 1938 by F.W. Payne & Son. It was built for the Southern Malayan Tin Dredging Ltd, a company that operated 6 dredges in total in Batu Gajah and Tanjung Tualang.

A tin dredge is like a floating factory. Its 4,500 tons weight is supported by a floating dock with 75 meters in length and 35 meters in width and 3 meters in depth. It works by scooping up bucket loads of tin-bearing soil at the front end. Then the soil passes through an oscillating drum and a system of jigs and screens to extract the tin, before spewing out the waste material at the rear end through a number of chutes. The dredge was used for 44 years until 1982 when the Malaysian tin industry was in rapid decline due to a combination of exhausted tin deposits, low tin prices and high operating costs.

All the tin mining and dredging activity which took place for over a hundred years has left behind a pockmarked landscape. In January 2015, the area is undergoing a MYR 8.5 million renovation for 2 years which is carried out by Mentri Besar Incorporated. It is now become the tourist attraction.

Image by: Tony Ng

Operating Hours

Daily: 9.00 a.m – 6.00 p.m

Admission

International Visitors
Adult: RM 20.00
Child: RM 10.00
Seniors: RM 20.00

MyKad Rate
Adult: RM 10.00
Child: RM 5.00
Seniors: RM 5.00

Location

9th KM, Jalan Tanjung Tualang, 31000 Batu Gajah, Negeri Perak, Malaysia.

View map.

Hear From Others

If you are interested in seeing this important piece of Malaysia’s industrial heritage you had better visit Tanjung Tualang soon while you still can.

ThriftyTraveller

The Tanjung Tualang Dredge No 5 (TT5), located at Batu 5, Jalan Tanjung Tualang is living proof that this area was once part of a major mining operation taking place within the Kinta Valley.

Rosli Mansor
IpohEcho

I remember watching The Tin Mine, a Thai movie, the story revolves around a boy and his life growing up in a mining camp in southern Thailand during the post World War II era. Seeing a real tin dredge is bliss!

ThePinaySoloBackpacker

Nearby Attractions

 Pasir Salak Historical Complex

The Pasir Salak Historical Complex is located in Pasir Salak, Perak. It was opened in 2004 to commemorates the extraordinary history of Pasir Salak and its brave warriors. Among these warriors are Seputum, Datok Sagor and Datuk Maharajalela.

Leaning Tower of Teluk Intan

The Leaning Tower of Teluk Intan is located at the center of a square surrounded by fours roads in Teluk Intan, Perak. The tower is a bit slanted southwest. The tower was built in 1885 and was made of bricks and wood.