GEORGE TOWN, July 25 — Penang will be applying for about RM20 billion funding from Putrajaya for two components of its Penang Transport Master Plan (PTMP).
Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow said the state exco last week decided to write to the federal government for funding.
“We will be writing to the Prime Minister and Finance Minister to request for funding to implement the Light Rail Transit (LRT) and Pan Island Link 1 (PIL1),” he told a press conference at his office today.
He said the state will likely send the letter by this week.
“We hope to get full funding for both projects, which is about RM20 billion,” he said.
PIL1 is a 19.5km highway that is estimated to cost RM7.5 billion while the LRT stretches 29.5km with 27 stations and estimated to cost RM8.4 billion.
Chow said if the funding was approved, the state will consider scaling down and reviewing the size of the Penang South Reclamation (PSR) project.
However, he could not specify how they could scale down the reclamation of three islands that covers 4,500 acres.
“We will get to this if we get funding from the federal government,” he said.
The state government had previously applied for a RM1 billion bridging loan from Putrajaya to kickstart the PSR once it obtains the necessary approval.
Chow said the state is still waiting for a decision from the federal government on its application for the RM1 billion loan.
He also expressed his hope to turn PTMP into a federal project so that the state do not have to bear the full costs of the RM46 billion project.
Earlier, the Penang lawmaker together with the state exco and some state assemblymen, had a two-hour meeting with Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, representatives from Penang Fishermen’s Association and representatives from PTMP project delivery partner, SRS Consortium, to discuss the project, the proposed PSR and its effects on the fishing communities.
Anwar had expressed concerns over the objections raised by the fishermen against the PSR which could negatively affect their livelihood.
“I called this meeting with the Penang chief minister and the fishermen to listen and understand the issue from both sides,” he said.
He expressed his support for the state government in implementing the project after listening to the details of the project.
“At the same time, PKR and I will continue to listen to the fishermen’s concerns,” he said.
When asked about his support for the reclamation project, Anwar stressed that he was not committed to support either the fishermen or the Penang state government.
“After listening to both sides, I see they are open for negotiations, on condition that Penang gets the funds from the federal government, and they can rescale the three islands project to one or two islands,” he said.
He also praised Chow for his willingness to listen to the views raised by the fishermen.
The PSR is the state’s funding module for the PTMP.
The state plans to sell some of the 4,500 acres land created to fund PTMP and to add to the state’s land bank.
