KUALA LUMPUR, May 11 — HSS Engineers Bhd expects the implementation of major infrastructure projects and award of new contracts to be accelerated in the second half of 2021 to reinvigorate the economy as the Covid-19 pandemic eases with the vaccine immunisation programme.
Co-founder and executive vice chairman Tan Sri Ir Kuna Sittampalam said the government’s pledge to pump-prime the economy was reflected in the approved allocation of RM69 billion for public infrastructure development in the Budget 2021, the highest development expenditure budget in history.
“This is in addition to the key mega projects worth around RM143 billion announced under Budget 2020 which will be rolled over to Budget 2021,” he said in the engineering consultancy group’s 2020 annual report.
Kuna, who is also the company’s acting group chief executive officer, said the undertakings included the rollout of key infrastructure projects in the transportation sector in the likes of Mass Rapid Transit 3, Johor Bahru-Singapore Rapid Transit System, Penang Transport Master Plan and Pan Borneo Highway.
“Moving forward, we foresee that the government will look at privatisation as a driver of infrastructure projects to reduce the financial strain on national coffers,” he said.
He said HSS Engineers group’s engineering consulting and project management expertise was well-placed in these critical sectors with proven track records in crucial projects spanning across many decades.
Since its inception, he said, the company had supported the government’s agenda in propelling the nation’s advancement and it endeavoured to reprise its role in the coming year.
“Having weathered the challenges of 2020, we are confident of our future on the back of our healthy order book and projects in the pipeline,” he said. — Bernama
