Penang extends deadline for RM9.5bil LRT project bids

GEORGE TOWN: Penang has given more time to those interested in a pre-qualification exercise for the proposed Bayan Lepas LRT project to submit documents.

The two-week extension is to find out whether the interested companies are technically and financially competent to bid for the RM9.5 billion project.

State executive councillor Zairil Khir Johari said several specialist rail firms from Europe and Asia had asked for more time to get letters from banks and documentation on joint ventures with Malaysian companies.

In a statement, he said more than 40 Malaysian and foreign firms had purchased and downloaded the pre-qualification documents to date.

The scope of work, according to the pre-qualification documents, involves a 26.8kmelevated viaduct, 23 stations, a depot and five park-and-ride facilities.

Those eligible to qualify for the bid must have completed urban train projects in the past10 years worth RM800 million to RM1.5 billion, the tender page on the Penang Infrastructure Corporation showed.

The companies must have finished at least three elevated railway stations with a minimum of 3km completed in a single project in the past 10 years.

Joint venture companies must also prove that they have completed a railway system worth more than RM800 million in the past five years.

The LRT line is to be financed through the creation of three reclaimed islands under the Penang Transport Master Plan, which has yet to take off.