No signs of delay in mega projects btimes.com.my Published: 2008/03/14 NEW Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng does not expect any delays in the implementation of approved mega projects in the state that come under the purview of the federal government. Projects such as the Second Penang Bridge, the monorail project and Penang Outer Ring Road are commitments made to the people by the federal government and he did not anticipate any hitches. "We also hope that the government will accede to the wishes of the people to fund the Second Penang Bridge project using Petronas funds," he said during a media briefing at his office in Komtar here. Lims hopes, however, could face a setback as Penang Umno yesterday said it would recommend that the federal government stop the implementation of all proposed mega projects, including those planned under the Northern Corridor Economic Region, the Penang Sentral project, the Rapid- Penang bus service and others. State Umno secretary Datuk Azhar Ibrahim said the previous Gerakan-led state government had worked together with the federal government to bring all sorts of development to Penang. "Since the people have clearly rejected development and made their choice for a change, we will recommend to the federal government that it should cancel all such projects. "Don't blame us for this," he said after the first state Umno liaison committee meeting following the election. To a question on the implications of such a decision to the people, he said: "The people have chosen and they wanted a new leadership." Later, Penang Port Sdn Bhd managing director Datuk Ahmad Hajar said he also planned to talk to the federal government about the ferry service. "I don't see any reason why the company should bear further losses from the ferry service. Our losses are about RM14 million a year," he said. "I am giving the federal government three options to stop the ferry service, to allow a fare increase or to hand over the running of the service to the new state government." The 24km Second Penang Bridge, which is expected to be completed by 2011, will link Batu Kawan on the mainland with Batu Maung on the island. China is providing Malaysia a US$800 million (RM2.5 billion) loan for this, the largest amount offered by the country for a single project in a foreign country. UEM Construction Sdn Bhd has named Fortune 500 company China Harbour Engineering Company Ltd (CHEC) as its main contractor for the project.
A consortium named CHEC-UEMC has been formed for this joint venture, in which CHEC holds a 51 per cent stake. The chief minister had also cautioned that local projects, such as the sea-front integrated Bayan Mutiara development, are likely to come under scrutiny if funds from the state coffers were involved. He said the state government hoped to attract more value-added investments, which would provide quality and high paying jobs. Penang, he said, should move away from investments that focused on labour-intensive or low wage operations. Lim is due to meet representatives of the Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers (northern region) today. Asked about the states future investment climate, Lim said it would hinge on global trends. "There is a danger of the United States slipping into a recession. If that happens, we cannot escape its negative impact."