Penang to sign formal agreement with SRS Consortium in January 2020

Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow said the state is yet to decide which of the projects will be implemented first except for the reclamation

of the three man-made islands, Penang South Reclamation. — Picture by Sayuti Zainudin

GEORGE TOWN, Dec 6 — The RM46 billion Penang Transport Master Plan (PTMP) will proceed once a formal agreement between the state government and its project delivery partner (PDP) SRS Consortium next month.

Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow who made the announcement today explained that the agreement could not be signed until the approvals for the various projects under PTMP were secured.

“That was the condition, now that the approvals were obtained, it is confirmed that the state and SRS are working to finalise the PDP agreement hopefully by January,” he said in a press conference at his office here.

He said once the agreement was signed, SRS will continue with the second stage of the infrastructure project which included the design works, calling for tender, evaluation of tender and appointment of contractors.

Chow said the state is yet to decide which of the projects will be implemented first except for the reclamation of the three man-made islands, Penang South Reclamation (PSR).

“Of course the reclamation will have to start first and it will start together with either the LRT or PIL1,” he said, referring to two of the PTMP components, a Light Rail Transit connecting Bayan Lepas to George Town and the Pan Island Link 1, a 19.5km highway connecting Gurney Drive to Bayan Lepas.

He said the financing of the project will also have to be finalised during this period.

“Depending on the financial arrangement, we will decide on which package to start first,” he said.

He said once the formal agreement is signed with SRS, the issue of the state obtaining a bond and federal government guarantee will have to be sped up.

“We hope to work on the bond arrangements and the federal government guarantee in these few months,” he said.

Since the agreement is yet to be signed, Chow said SRS is yet to submit their claims for costs incurred in obtaining the various approvals for the PTMP projects.

The state government is now holding a Master Plan Design Competition (MDC) for the Penang South Reclamation (PSR), which is now also called the Penang South Islands (PSI).

Chow said the MDC is now progressing as planned with the proposed designs and projects for the islands.

“All these are falling into place over the next few months,” he said.

Earlier, he announced that the state had received a total 124 registration of interest (ROI) from applicants from over 25 countries.

“About a third of the ROI were from Malaysian firms and we have shortlisted it to 27 participants,” he said.

He said the second stage of the MDC was the Expression of Interest (EOI) from the 27 shortlisted participants.

“The shortlisted participants will have to present more details on their consortiums before December 30,” he said.

He said five finalists will be closed by January next year and each consortium must include an architect or town planner from Malaysia.

He said the chosen finalises will need to present their designs and the winner of the MDC will be appointed as the Lead Master Plan Designer by the main panel of judges.

Chow said PSI is strategically located near the Bayan Lepas Industrial Zone, the Penang International Airport and the Penang Second Bridge.

“This project will prepare Penang for Industry 4.0 with smart city initiatives complete with an integrated transport system,” he said.

He said the PSI design will be based on its natural environment by the seafront with a public beach, a promenade, open green spaces, bicycle lanes and recreational parks.

He said the PSI will provide new housing for all levels of society and a future land space for more Electronics and Electrical (E&E) companies to set up there.

The PSI, also known as PSR, is the creation of three islands covering 4,500 acres off the southern coast of Penang Island.

More information on the MDC can be obtained from www.pg-mdc.com.