MALAYSIA has agreed in principle to resume building the high-speed rail (HSR) with Singapore, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said today. 

He also said the second 5G network will be finalised by the first quarter of 2024.

“We’ve agreed in principle. We just have look at land acquisition and alignment with Singapore,” Anwar said when asked at a dialogue with Malaysian and foreign media in Seri Perdana, Putrajaya, today. 

“It doesn’t make sense to pay a penalty. It’s been stalled due to financial reasons in Malaysia,” he added.

Malaysia is paying RM320 million in penalties to Singapore for not continuing the HSR, which will link Kuala Lumpur to Singapore. 

“If we go ahead, it’s with lower costs and private sector participation,” Anwar said. 

Johor ruler, Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar, who will become the Yang di-Pertuan Agong in January, had called for the HSR project to be revived and realigned to run through Forest City, a property development built on reclaimed land in the Johor Straits.

Malaysia and Singapore signed an agreement in 2016 for the construction of the 350km rail project.

The HSR was due to be completed in 2026 with trains running at speeds of up to 300kph, cutting travel time between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore to 90 minutes.

The project was suspended by the Pakatan Harapan government in September 2018 but revived in December 2018 with adjustments made to contain costs.

It was, however, was axed by the Perikatan Nasional (PN) government in 2021. 

The Anwar administration had said it was open to reviving the billion ringgit project provided it is funded by the private sector, not Putrajaya. 

On the second 5G network, Anwar disclosed that it had been agreed and only awaiting the final decision by end-March. 

“We decided we need a second network for security and redundancy reasons,” he said. 

The PN government in March 2021 set up a special purpose vehicle, Digital Nasional Bhd (DNB), to build the 5G mobile communications network instead of auctioning off the spectrum. 

The current government has said it will allow a second network once DNB has completed coverage for 80% of populated areas. – December 23, 2023.