PUTRAJAYA, July 6 — Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad confirmed today his visit to China next month.

The prime minister said he will be seeking to renegotiate the government’s contracts and to seek lower interest rates for loans from Beijing to build the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) and two gas pipeline projects undertaken by Suria Strategic Energy Resources Sdn Bhd (SSER).

"I wanted to go in July but President Xi Jinping said he was not available this month so I will head there in August.

"There are several issues to be brought up, among which is the unfairness of the terms of the contract and also on the loan.

"The interest is also of concern to us because it is much higher than when governments borrow. Normally governments borrow at 3 per cent and below but this is very high,” he told a news conference after chairing the Pakatan Harapan presidential meeting here.

In a statement yesterday, the Finance Ministry said it had issued a stop-work notice to all contractors linked to ECRL and SSER.

Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng previously said the ECRL project, which is to link the east and west coast of peninsular Malaysia, could hit RM81 billion due to land acquisition cost and loan interest during its construction.

The ECRL’s main contractor is China Communications Construction Co Ltd.

Last month, the new Pakatan Harapan government unearthed another scandal involving the SSER, a unit under the Finance Ministry undertaking two gas projects costing RM9.4 billion.

The Multi-Product Pipeline (MPP) and Trans-Sabah Gas Pipeline (TSGP) were approved by the Najib Cabinet in July 2016 that saw only 13 per cent work completion despite an 88 per cent draw down on its funds.

The MPP involves the construction of a 600km multi-product petroleum pipeline connecting Melaka and Port Dickson to Jitra, Kedah.

The TSGP involves the construction of a 662km gas pipeline from Kimanis Gas Terminal to Sandakan and Tawau.

Both projects were awarded to China Petroleum Pipeline Bureau on November 1, 2016.