22 pct progress in Pan Borneo Highway Sabah portion

KUALA LUMPUR: The construction of the Pan Borneo Highway in Sabah has recorded 22 per cent progress of 12 ongoing work packages as of Dec 31, last year, and is expected to be fully completed in stages by June 2023.

The Works Ministry, in a statement yesterday, said another three additional new packages were expected to be completed by end of 2023.

“The implementation period of the 12 contracts has experienced a slight delay compared to the initial completion date (June 2022) due to, among other things, land acquisition process and obstruction at the construction site as well as the changes in project implementation method, from project delivery partner (PDP) to conventional contract,” said the ministry.

The implementation of the Pan Borneo Highway project has continued even after the government took over the project from the PDP on Sept 21, last year.

The project implementation has been changed to the conventional contract of the Public Works Department (PWD), with Sabah PWD as project manager, and the government to gain savings of about RM1.2 billion compared to the previous method, it said.

“The savings, among others, has enabled the government to approve three additional packages compared to the original 12 packages, involving the route from Beluran to Telupid, costing RM1 billion and the tender is expected to be called in March this year,” it said.

“Similar to the Sarawak portion of the Pan Borneo Highway project, the cost involved for the Sabah portion of the highway, as well as other road projects in both states, will be fully borne by the federal government,” it said.

Apart from its commitment to continuing the existing 15 packages of the Pan Borneo Highway in Sabah, the government had also approved the construction of the 4,000km Trans-Borneo Highway, connecting Sabah, Sarawak and Kalimantan as well as the Sarawak-Sabah Link Road (SSLR).

The first phase of the RM600 million Trans-Borneo Highway, connecting Kalabakan in Sabah to Simanggaris in Indonesia, would be implemented this year, after it was announced during the tabling of the 2020 Budget in October last year.

“The construction of tollfree major roads in these two states reflects the government’s commitment and determination to ensure that the people of Sabah and Sarawak would enjoy better socioeconomic development,” said the ministry in response to allegations that the Pan Borneo Highway project in Sabah was ‘abandoned’. — Bernama