AROUND 214 local contractors of the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) project who were appointed previously will be recalled, said Malaysia Rail Link Sdn Bhd CEO Darwis Abdul Razak.

“Local contractors who had been appointed earlier on are still involved. We will also recall contractors who were previously involved in this project,” he said at the press conference held in conjunction of the project’s relaunch.

“About 214 contractors, suppliers and consultants who were involved in the project will be recalled.”

The project was put on hold for 10 months, after Pakatan Harapan decided to review its bloated cost.

It was given a reboot in April, following a successful renegotiation with the project’s main contractor China Communications Construction Co Ltd abd the government of China.

The renegotiation resulted in the cost being brought down by RM22 billion to RM44 billion. 

As for the tender process for sub-contract works, Loke said the process is still going on.

A pre-qualification exercise had been held in May to identify potential sub-contractors to fill the 40% local content quota for the infrastructure project.

“The pre-qualification has been done and the bidding process is still ongoing.”

Loke said the results of the tender submission will not be announced at one go, but from time to time throughout the course of construction.

The project is expected to be completed in December 2026.

Meanwhile, Darwis said the potential local contractors eyeing the 40% civil works portion will be notified in writing in a matter of weeks.

The ECRL pre-qualification evaluation committee is in the final stages of evaluating and shortlisting the documents submitted by 1,321 Malaysian construction firms.

As for the land acquisition, Loke said Putrajaya will work with the respective state governments to facilitate the process.

Darwis said the land acquisition process for the Dungun-Mentakab stretch will involve 1,700 lots.

Once completed, the 640km rail network will link Kota Baru to Putrajaya. 

The journey between the two cities is expected to take four hours. – July 25, 2019.