Federal backing for Penang LRT

Mutiara Line to begin in last quarter of the year after negotiations end

PUTRAJAYA: Penang’s first light rail transit (LRT) project, the Mutiara Line, will be undertaken as a federal project, says the Transport Minister.

Anthony Loke said the Cabinet made the decision at its meeting on March 22.

He said construction of the 29km LRT line will begin by the fourth quarter of the year, with completion estimated by 2030.

“The aim is that within six months, the negotiation with SRS Consortium Sdn Bhd can be concluded. Following that, we expect physical work to start.

“The government will consider a suitable method to finance the project, whether through a development allocation or others,” he said at his ministry here yesterday.

Loke said the total cost would be announced after negotiations with the relevant parties concluded.

“We have the cost, but we need to negotiate first with those involved. We don’t want to set the cost based on what we have decided, rather (it should be) following the negotiations,” he said, adding that the land acquisition process had been completed.

Contracts for the LRT project have been divided to three main components: Silicon Island to Komtar (Segment 1); Komtar to Penang Sentral (Segment 2); and turnkey systems and rolling stocks.

Loke said SRS Consortium was offered Segment 1 based on the Single Sourcing Request for Proposal mechanism.

The two other contracts will be offered on an open tender basis to both local and international firms incorporated in Malaysia.

The minister said the offer to SRS Consortium was made as requested by the Penang government, which had appointed the firm as the project delivery partner of the Penang Transportation Master Plan, which includes the Mutiara Line, through an open tender in August 2015.

“SRS has also studied the early technical designs while acquiring approvals for the Environmental Impact Assessment, Social Impact Assessment and conditional Skim Kereta Api,” he said, adding that the cost for these was borne by the firm.

Loke said the Cabinet agreed to appoint MRT Corp as developer and asset owner of the new train line.

He said the rolling stocks operations depot and transit-oriented development projects will be conducted by MRT Corp together with the state government.

“The new strategy is aimed at generating extra non-fare revenue to be reinvested for the maintenance of trains in the future,” he added.