‘Local company can also get tender for high-speed train’

Malaysian companies are more suitable for the civil infrastructure part of the project because it involves building the stations, viaducts and other structures, says MyHSR Corporation.

KUALA LUMPUR: MyHSR Corporation Sdn Bhd doesn’t discount the possibility of a local company getting the tender for the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore High Speed Rail (HSR) project.

CEO Mohd Nur Ismal Mohamed Kamal said MyHSR wants to see more participants bidding for the HSR tender.

“There is no favouritism as we want as many proposals to come in as possible.

“We want to make sure it is competitive,” he told reporters after the Malaysian-French High Speed Rail Seminar 2017 today.

He said Malaysian companies are more suitable for the civil infrastructure part of the project because it involves building the stations, viaducts and other structures.

“We have many companies with experience in the MRT and LRT projects.

“We have enough capacity and knowledge to build the structures but we need the experts to create the designs.”

Ismal said the companies creating the designs must have deep expertise in HSR and the local contractors can build the infrastructure.

“The tender is open to all and it doesn’t mean local companies can’t tie up with other companies to form a consortium. The main thing is they need the design expertise.”

Ismal also said that many countries had shown a keen interest in the HSR project. They include China, Korea, Japan and France.

He said they intended to open the tenders later this year and allow the companies a year to prepare their submissions. “Then we will elavalute the tenders.”

FMT had reported that Land Public Transport Commission (SPAD) chairman Syed Hamid Albar had said Malaysia and Singapore would offer the joint tender development project for the HSR early this year.

“The agreement between Singapore and Malaysia was signed on Dec 13, 2016 and the project will be completed in 2026 as agreed.

“The areas that stand to benefit when the project is completed are tourism, real estate and manufacturing. The construction of HSR will create new job opportunities.”

HSR would link Bandar Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur with the Jurong Lake District in Singapore, with stops in Seremban (Negeri Sembilan), Malacca, and the Johor towns of Muar, Batu Pahat and Iskandar Puteri (formerly Nusajaya).

With the potential to travel at speeds of up to 320kph, the HSR will move passengers between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore in 90 minutes. -FMT