Tuesday, July 1, 2014

MRT Corp seeks speedy Line 2 decision

By Sharen Kaur
sharen@mediaprima.com.my
Published in NST on July 1, 2014

KUALA LUMPUR: Mass Rapid Transit Corp Sdn Bhd (MRT Corp) hopes a decision on Line 2 of the Klang Valley Mass Rapid Transit (KVMRT) project will be made soon as it wants to immediately deploy resources to it from Line 1, which is more than 40 per cent completed.
“We hope that a decision on Line 2 will be made soon so that we can deploy the learning curve and resources from Line 1 and not waste them. The faster Line 2 starts the better, as Line 1 is progressing well.
“The ball is in the MOF’s (Ministry of Finance) court,” said MRT Corp chief executive officer Datuk Azhar Abdul Hamid.
According to Azhar, 45.59 per cent of Line 1 has been completed as at May 31.
He said seven more contracts worth slightly below RM1 billion will be given out this year, bringing the total value of jobs awarded to RM23 billion.
MMC-Gamuda JV — a 50:50 joint venture between Gamuda Bhd and MMC Corp Bhd — was appointed as the project delivery partner (PDP) for Line 1 in January 2011. It also won the RM8.2 billion tunnelling job.
As a PDP, it will receive a six per cent fee of Line 1’s total contract value. Should the total cost of the project be less than or equal to the targeted cost, the PDP will be entitled to the full fee. However, if the project cost is more than the targeted cost, the fee will be cut in accordance with the agreed formula.
A PDP’s top priority is to ensure the successful completion of mass rapid transit lines within the pre-determined target cost and date.
In the event a contractor or a sub-contractor does not meet the pre-determined work package requirements, the PDP will step in at no risk to project delivery cost and time.
On Line 2, Azhar said it will also be implemented based on the PDP concept and opened to the private sector.
“The government has said Line 2 will be done based on a PDP concept and it is its call on who it wants,” he told Business Times.
MRT Corp is the implementation agency and asset owner of the KVMRT, which comprises three lines estimated to cost around RM80 billion.
Line 1, which is under construction, is from Sungai Buloh to Kajang.
Line 2 will comprise the north-south line from Selayang to Putrajaya, while Line 3 is the circle line that will loop around the Kuala Lumpur city centre.
It is understood that the Land Public Transport Commission has completed the alignment feasibility study for Line 2 and it is currently being reviewed by the MOF.

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