GEORGE TOWN, Dec 6 — The Penang government has shortlisted 27 out of 124 Registration of Interest (ROI) submitted for the master plan competition for the development of three man-made islands under the Penang South Reclamation (PSR) project.
Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow said the Penang South Islands (PSI) Masterplan Design Competition (MDC) which was held between Nov 6 and 25, attracted the interest of architectural firms from 25 countries, including Malaysia.
“I am very happy with the interest from all over the world and all continents except the Antarctica,” he said
Speaking in a press conference here today, Chow said the PSI was a strategic initiative of the Penang Government which would be a catalyst for its socio-economic agenda.
He said nine of the shortlisted ROI were from architectural firms in Malaysia, while the others were from 10 other countries, including United Kingdom, Netherlands and Australia.
Chow said the 27 shortlisted participants will have to submit their Expression of Interest (EOI) for the PSI project between Dec 6 and 30 for the second round of shortlisting.
“This will be followed by a selection of five finalists which will be announced in January 2020. The finalists will be selected based on their design proposals, and the winner chosen by a main panel of jury will be appointed by the state government as the lead master plan designer, subject to the terms and conditions,” he said.
Meanwhile, PSI individual advisor Ang Chee Cheong, who was also present at the press conference, said the five finalists will prepare for the project design stage, which will be held on January 8 next year.
“The submissions will be submitted in April and I believe there will be a public exhibition at the end of that process for public engagement and feedback. I think the whole exercise will complete by May next year,” he added.
Under the PSR project, the state government is proposing to reclaim about 1,821 hectares of the sea to build three islands south of the Penang International Airport towards the east around Permatang Damar Laut to create a land bank to fund the Penang Transport Master Plan (PTMP).
The RM46 billion PTMP project entails the construction of an undersea tunnel connecting the island to the mainland, highways, LRT, monorail and a bus network on the island and Seberang Perai. — Bernama
