THE High Speed Rail project linking Kuala Lumpur and Singapore will be deferred by two years until May 31, 2020 after both countries signed legal documents to vary the HSR Bilateral Agreement today.

After two months of negotiations, both countries have agreed to postpone the project at Malaysia’s request with Kuala Lumpur bearing the agreed costs for suspending the project.

Malaysia will also bear the costs incurred by Singapore in fulfilling the HSR Bilateral Agreement if the project does not begin by May 31, 2020.

The new agreement has also extended the commencement of the HSR Express Service to begin on Jan 1, 2031 instead of the original date of Dec 31, 2026.

Due to the length of the suspension, Singapore and Malaysia’s infrastructure companies, SG HSR Ptd Ltd and MyHSR Cooperation Sdn Bhd will be calling off the ongoing international joint tender for the project.

In April, MyHSR had announced the appointment of YTL Corp Bhd for a portion of the HSR project. Other contractors announced for the job included a joint venture between Malaysian Resources Corp Bhd (MRCB) and Garuda Bhd. 

During the suspension, both countries will continue to look for ways to reduce the cost of the project which Malaysia estimates to be RM110 billion.

The new agreement was signed by Economic Affairs Minister Azmin Ali and Singapore’s Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan in Putrajaya today.

The event was witnessed by Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad, Deputy Prime Minister Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail and Singapore’s Deputy Prime Minister and Coordinating Minister for National Security Teo Chee Hean.

Meanwhile, MyHSR Corporation Sdn Bhd (MyHSR Corp) said in a statement that it supported the decision to suspend the project.

It said along with Singapore’s infrastructure company SG HSR, it would call off the ongoing international joint tender for the Assets Company (AssetsCo) launched earlier this year.

“We are thankful for the participation from global HSR players as well as local entities in the AssetsCo tender and look forward to engaging them again once the project details are firmed up.

“In light of this new development, MyHSR Corp, as the project delivery vehicle under the Minister of Finance Incorporated, will continue to work with the relevant authorities during this period,” it said. – September 5, 2018.