Langat 2 project delayed

KUALA LUMPUR - The federal government is not backing out from its promise to get Sungai Langat 2 Water Treatment Plant (Langat 2) and the distribution system rolling.

Energy, Green Technology and Water Minister Datuk Seri Peter Chin said the project was delayed as the Selangor government has yet to give its approval.

"But Langat 2 is very important because if it is not built by 2016, we are going to have a situation where we have too much raw water and not enough treatment plants," he said after officiating the Powertek Energy Scholarship Awards presentation ceremony today.

The Langat 2 plant has been a hot topic since it was approved by the federal government in 2007, but it had been delayed after Selangor refused to approve the development order for various reasons.

Rebutting claims that the federal government has chosen to delay the project, Chin said the government is not wavering from its push for Langat 2.

"If the local council comes to us tomorrow and tells us we have the go-ahead to build the plant, we will start immediately.

"It is so crucial that we get this plant up and running, we cannot say 'no' to this project or we will end up with no treated water in Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya soon," he said.

Tendering of contracts for the project is currently underway and will close on Dec 27.

Chin said the government will take three months to deliberate and award the contracts and construction is expected to start by June 2013.

"We hope Selangor will look into this and change their minds," he said.

The construction of the project is about 29 months delayed from the original schedule.

The project should be 68.95% ready but as of October, the status of the project construction was only 28.4% ready.

-thesundaily