KL-Iskandar Puteri HSR study done, awaiting Cabinet submission

 

The Cabinet will study the proposed Kuala Lumpur-Iskandar Puteri High Speed Rail (HSR) project, says economic affairs minister Mustapa Mohamed. (Bernama pic)

PETALING JAYA: A study into the proposed Kuala Lumpur-Iskandar Puteri High Speed Rail (HSR) project has been completed and will be submitted to the Cabinet, says economic affairs minister Mustapa Mohamed.

He also said a proposal to link the HSR to Bangkok, Thailand, was at a “very early” stage. This was recently mooted by former prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin in the Dewan Rakyat.

“But the study for the KL-Iskandar Puteri HSR is done. We’re just waiting for it to be submitted to the Cabinet,” he said in a question-and-answer session moderated by Bursa Malaysia Berhad chairman Wahid Omar at Invest Malaysia 2021 today.

Mustapa, also known as Tok Pa, said Putrajaya had also received several proposals and presentations on the MRT3 project, admitting that there was a need for it.

“But the model has got to be carefully looked at. For us in the government, what’s important is the amount of money the government has got to put in to make the project successful,” he said.

Mustapa said there had been proposals for MRT3 to be constructed on a “moderate basis”, given the government’s current financial position. He said Putrajaya would try to minimise helping out in terms of land acquisition, support loans and government guarantees.

“In terms of help from the government, under the present circumstances, we’ll have to look at the financial implications. But when the economic situation improves and government coffers have been boosted, then we can revisit some of these projects.

“For these two projects, like MRT3 for example, the need is there. We’re now at about 20% in usage of public transport, which is very low for a country at this level of development.

“We aspire to go to 40% or 50% and, if possible, beyond that. This is also very important in terms of sustainable development,” he said.

Mustapa also said his ministry was working on developing a new Public-Private Partnership model (PPP 3.0), which would be more sustainable, aimed at reducing Putrajaya’s financial commitments upon the completion of any project.

In the past, he said the government would pay maintenance charges after a project is completed, on top of assisting in land acquisitions, giving support loans and offering government guarantees.

“But the general principle is, firstly, we are thinking of providing some form of one-off assistance and, secondly, the implementation of a project should not result in an additional burden on the government.”

Nonetheless, he said this was still a work in progress, with a concept paper set to be presented to the Cabinet once it was finalised. - FMT