Rail Project On Track, Says Gamuda-MMC

Published: 2009/03/13

MC Corp Bhd (2194) and Gamuda Bhd say they can sort out land purchase issues and complete the RM12.5 billion electrified double-track rail project on time

Work to lay parallel lines connecting Ipoh in Perak to Padang Besar in Perlis is more than a fifth complete.However, late last year Gamuda group managing director Datuk Lin Yun Ling said there were substantial delays in Penang partly due to squatters who were still occupying land reserved for the railway.

"So far, we are on track. We expect the project to be completed by January 7 2013. We are confident that all these can be resolved," executive director Azmi Mat Nor told reporters at a briefing in Petaling Jaya yesterday.

The equal partnership between Gamuda and MMC was awarded the contract in December 2007.The 329km electrified double-track line will cut across Seberang Prai, Penang, Perak, Kedah and Perlis. It will also link up with the Rawang line.Azmi said the project's cost in still within budget and the main contractor has bought RM3 billion worth of materials so far.

Based on estimates, the project will generate RM15 billion worth of downstream economic activities over five years.The project has created new jobs, benefiting local sub-contractors as well as local material suppliers.A total of 7,000 workers are involved in the project with another 6,000 expected to be hired over the next six months.

Currently, 90 per cent of the workers are locals with wages and benefits of more than RM2 billion, he said.About 21.4 per cent of the project, worth RM2.8 billion, has been completed in just over 15 months.

So far, a total of 400 or 92 per cent of contracts have been awarded to as many as 40 sub-contractors. Another 100 sub-contracts worth RM2 billion will be handed out in stages until the end of the first quarter of 2010, Azmi said.