KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 13 — The Kuala Lumpur-Singapore High-Speed Rail (HSR) project remains unaffected even though Japanese firms have withdrawn from involvement in the construction of the project, said Transport Minister Anthony Loke.
The companies are free to decide whether to participate in the project or not, as it is still in the Request for Information (RFI) stage.
“If Japanese companies are not interested in entering the tender, it is up to them. We conduct the RFI openly; why should we (Malaysia) feel pressured?
“Perhaps they (Japanese companies) feel it does not align with the model we want to implement. So, it is up to them.
“Many other parties, even hundreds of companies, have expressed interest,” he said during a press conference at the Batu Caves KTM station today.
Loke added the RFI process will conclude on Monday (January 15), and the decisions of companies expressing interest in the HSR will be known thereafter before moving on to the Request for Proposal (RFP) stage.
Yesterday, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said the government will evaluate the impact of the withdrawal of Japanese firms from the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore HSR project.
This comes after a report from Japanese news agency Kyodo News, quoting sources which said the withdrawal was due to the project becoming too risky without the financial support of the Malaysian government.
— Bernama
