MALAYSIA and Singapore have taken another major step forward in the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore High Speed Rail (HSR) journey, said Singaporean Transport Minister and Coordinating Minister for Infrastructure Khaw Boon Wan.

“Today, we called a joint tender for an assets company (AssetsCo) for the HSR project. The AssetsCo will supply the systems and trains, and coordinate operations in the HSR network,” he said in a Facebook post.

Khaw, who is currently acting prime minister of Singapore, noted that the HSR was an important bilateral project.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong is on overseas leave from December 19 to 31.

“My counterpart (Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department) Abdul Rahman Dahlan and I are honoured to be involved in this game-changing project.”

He said both of them “consulted regularly”.

Last week, Khaw said Rahman stopped by Singapore to tie up some loose ends, “so that the AssetsCo tender could be launched as scheduled”.

“We are both heartened by the strong international interest in the HSR project.

“We look forward to receiving high-quality competitive bids for the tender, and will continue to work towards the goal of commencing HSR services in 2026.”

Bidders have until June 29 next year to submit proposals to MyHSR Corp and SG HSR Pte Ltd.

MyHSR Corp and SG HSR, in a joint statement earlier today, said they aimed to select a qualified bidder by the end of next year. – Bernama, December 20, 2017.