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PETALING JAYA: Avoiding a RM60bil guarantee was one of the changes Malaysia sought before the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore high-speed rail (HSR) project was suspended, says Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed (photo).
He said the proposed changes put forward by Malaysia included a new and more orderly project structure based on HSR models in Europe, the UK, Japan and South Korea.
“The proposed new structure would also allow the government to avoid issuing a RM60bil guarantee for a period of 30 years.
“Apart from this, it would also have given us more flexibility to finance the project,” he said.
Mustapa also said Malaysia had proposed changes to the station’s alignment and design that would have further reduced the cost of the project by 30%.
He said that several intensive discussions at the technical and ministerial level took place over the past six months, with the prime ministers of both countries holding a video conference on December 2, 2020.
“Unfortunately, we could not reach an agreement.
“As an individual who has been directly involved in the two-way discussions for the past six months, I wish to emphasize that we did our best to safeguard the interests of the nation,” the minister from the Prime Minister’s Department said in a Facebook post. Yesterday.
He said another factor that was considered was the possibility of starting the project two years in advance.
“This would have helped accelerate Malaysia’s economic recovery after Covid-19, in particular the construction industry,” he said.
Despite the fact that no consensus was reached on the proposed changes, Mustapa noted that the discussions were carried out in a friendly and constructive manner with both countries seeking to strengthen close ties.
He explained that the bilateral agreement with Singapore to develop the HSR project was signed in 2016 but the project was suspended by the previous administration in May 2018 for review.
With the emergence of Covid-19, Mustapa said, the current government was forced to find ways to reduce the cost of various mega-projects while ensuring economic recovery.
“The original terms that were signed under bilateral agreements in 2016 were no longer viable for Malaysia,” he said, adding that Singapore agreed in May last year to allow Malaysia to postpone the start of the project until the end of 2020.
On the issue of compensation to Singapore, Mustapa said he could not release details as the exact amount had not yet been determined.
“I wish to emphasize that the compensation is not punitive in nature, but is for reimbursement of specific project costs that were expanded by Singapore.
“We are awaiting the details of the Singapore costs and once received, they will be thoroughly analyzed before being verified,” he said.
Although subject to confidentiality under the bilateral agreement, Mustapa said he would discuss with Singapore to allow compensation information to be shared once finalized.
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