Monday, March 30, 2009

Syarikat khas ambil alih konsesi jambatan Pulau Pinang

Syarikat khas ambil alih konsesi jambatan Pulau PinangKUALA LUMPUR 4 Ogos - Kerajaan mewujudkan sebuah syarikat khas (SPV) 100 peratus miliknya sebagai pemegang konsesi Jambatan Kedua Pulau Pinang, yang seterusnya akan mengagihkan kontrak membina jambatan itu, kata Menteri Kewangan Kedua, Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Yakcop, hari ini.Beliau berkata, kerajaan akan memutuskan pihak mana yang akan memungut tol dan kadar tol, kemudian.Pada mulanya, konsesi dan penswastaan Jambatan Kedua Pulau Pinang diberikan kepada UEM Group dan projek itu sepatutnya dilaksanakan atas dasar bina dan pindah."Dulu, cadangannya adalah bagi konsesi (membina dan menguruskan jambatan itu). Sekarang ia akan dilaksanakan sebagai satu kontrak," kata Nor Mohamed kepada pemberita pada program 'Wanita Bersama Pemimpin' di sini."Itulah sebabnya ditubuhkan SPV itu, yang akan menjadi seperti pemegang konsesi dan pihak manapun yang membina jambatan itu, akan melakukannya sebagai satu kontrak," katanya.Menurut satu laporan hujung minggu kerajaan akan melaksanakan projek Jambatan Kedua Pulau Pinang dengan menubuhkan SPV yang diberi nama Jambatan Kedua Pulau Pinang Sdn. Bhd. (JKPP), dan mengurangkan 40 peratus daripada kos kontrak yang sepatutnya diberikan kepada UEM Builders Bhd. pada awalnya.Nor Mohamed berkata, beliau belum tahu pihak mana yang akan menerima kontrak itu tetapi menegaskan bahawa pihak yang mendapat kontrak itu tidak perlu bimbang tentang mengumpul dana berbanding pemegang konsesi.Laporan sebuah penerbitan mingguan juga menyebut bahawa berikutan penubuhan JKPP, sumber-sumber berkata, surat anugerah diberikan kepada Chinese Harbour Engineering Company Ltd. (CHEC) dan UEM Builders, masing-masing melibatkan wang berjumlah RM2.3 bilion dan RM1.3 bilion bagi pembinaan bahagian-bahagian tertentu jambatan itu.Sementara itu, sebahagian besar agihan kerja yang diberikan kepada CHEC tidak berubah daripada kontrak asal, tetapi yang diberikan kepada UEM Builders telah dikurangkan sebanyak RM900 juta.Menurut laporan itu, UEM Builders tidak begitu menyenangi pengurangan kontrak itu dan ia masih belum menunjukkan tanda-tanda sama ada mahu menerima tugasan itu di bawah syarat-syarat sekarang.
P/S : Tak tahu bila nak siap, Chinese Harbour Engineering Company Ltd. (CHEC) Company dari malaysia ke or overseas? Kalau susah2 sangat, kasi sahaja untuk company malaysia, IJM pown ade bule joint!

Penang 2nd Bridge in Parliament

03 Mac, 2009 17:03 PM
Kos Projek Jambatan Kedua Pulau Pinang Tetap Pada RM4.3 BilionBy: Ramjit-->

KUALA LUMPUR, 3 Mac (Bernama) -- Kos pembinaan projek Jambatan Kedua Pulau Pinang masih tidak berubah pada RM4.3 bilion walaupun harga minyak mentah dunia turun, kata Timbalan Menteri di Jabatan Perdana Menteri, Devamany Krishnasamy.Beliau berkata kos kontrak projek itu tertakluk kepada "variasi harga" bagi beberapa item tertentu."Kelewatan kepada jadual pelaksanaan projek ini juga tidak membimbangkan dan dijangka tidak akan menjejaskan tempoh siap projek ini yang dijadualkan pertengahan tahun 2012," katanya ketika sesi soal-jawab di Dewan Rakyat, hari ini.

Beliau berkata demikian ketika menjawab soalan Lim Guan Eng (DAP-Bagan) yang meminta kerajaan persekutuan menyatakan sama ada kos pembinaan projek itu berkurangan berikutan penurunan harga minyak serta kedudukan pemberian tender pakej kedua (superstruktur) dan ketiga (lebuh raya darat), sebab-sebab kelewatan dan tarikh persiapan.Devamany berkata terdapat sedikit kelewatan kepada jadual pelaksanaan projek itu disebabkan syarikat kontraktor masih belum dapat memasuki kawasan tapak di Batu Kawan kerana membabitkan nelayan, penternak ikan serta penternak kerang yang akan terjejas akibat projek itu.

Beliau berkata kerajaan persekutuan telah memuktamadkan rundingan dengan kerajaan negeri Pulau Pinang serta lima penternak kerang yang terjejas berhubung dengan bayaran pampasan."Pihak syarikat Jambatan Kedua Sdn Bhd (JKSB) akan membuat bayaran yang berkaitan dan penternak-penternak kerang ini bolehlah mengosongkan tapak kawasan tersebut bagi membolehkan syarikat kontraktor memasuki kawasan kerja pada bila-bila masa bulan ini," katanya.

Menurutnya, pakej kedua superstruktur telah diberikan kepada UEM Builders Bhd tertakluk kepada persetujuan akhir antara JKSB dengan UEM Builders berhubung harga kos pembinaan superstruktur berkenaan yang akan dimuktamadkan tidak lama lagi.

Sementara pakej ketiga (lebuh raya darat), Devamany berkata pelaksanaan projek akan dilakukan secara tender terbuka dan JKSB sedang dalam persiapan menyediakan dokumen tender.Jambatan sepanjang 26 kilometer keseluruhannya menghubungkan Batu Maung di bahagian pulau dengan Batu Kawan di tanah besar.Projek pembinaan jambatan itu adalah usahasama antara UEM Builders dan China Harbour Engineering.-- BERNAMA

Earlier report on Penang 2nd Bridge (2008-08-18)

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 18 2008 (Bernama) - Construction works on the Second Penang Bridge are still going on, says the UEM Group, adding that two years of work worth RM200 million has already been done."The construction work continues. So far, at UEM Group Bhd, there has been no specific... formal instruction to do otherwise," said UEM Group managing director, Datuk Ahmad Pardas Senin to reporters after UEM World Bhd's extraordinary general meeting here Monday."UEM Builders still have a contract with us," he added when was asked on the progress of the project.

Some confusion had set in when UEM Builders Bhd received a letter from Jambatan Kedua Sdn Bhd (JKPP), the company that owns the Second Penang Bridge, on July 30, informing that it had taken over the duties of the Special Task Force and offered certain works on the project to UEM Builders.The government, however, had awarded the project to UEM Group last year on a concession basis whereby UEM Group subsequently awarded the construction of the job to a joint venture of Chinese Harbour Construction Company (CHEC) and UEM Builders with the former holding 51 percent.

"UEM Group did not receive the letter. That letter was sent to UEM Builders and UEM Builders have already replied in a query to Bursa Malaysia," he said.UEM Builders, meanwhile, in filing to Bursa Malaysia on Aug 6 said the scope of work awarded to it by Jambatan Kedua Sdn Bhd was over-lapping with the scope of work being negotiated by its parent company, UEM Group, with the government.UEM Builders said UEM Group was in negotiations with the government pursuant to an earlier decision made by the government to award the project to UEM group on a concession (build-operate-transfer) basis.

Asked if UEM Group would ask for compensation if the government totally revoked the project, Ahmad Pardas said, "I don't want to speculate.""At the end of the day it is a government project. We will always respect. The government has full right to which way they want the project to be." He added that the group was grateful to have been chosen as a party to undertake the project.The project is expected to be completed in 2011."We have done two years work. If we waited until everything is in place, nothing could have been done. We would not have been able to fulfill our undertaking by 2011," Ahmad Pardas said.He also added that if the company is able to progress with all things in place, it would be able to keep the momentum.

Elsewhere, Ahmad Pardas said the discussion on adjustment of toll rates nationwide was ongoing."We will always work and support whatever the government wants to do," he said, adding that nevertheless there would be issues to be addressed if there are to be any changes.-- BERNAMA

Penang Second Bridge

From Wikipedia

The Penang Second Bridge is a new bridge under construction in Penang, Malaysia. It will connect Batu Kawan on the mainland Seberang Perai and Batu Maung on Penang Island. It will be the second bridge to link the island to the mainland after Penang Bridge. The total length of the RM 3 billion bridge is 24 km (15 miles) and will become the longest bridge in Malaysia and Southeast Asia. China Harbour Engineering Co Ltd (CHEC) expected to start work on the second Penang bridge in November 2007 for completion in 2011, but it was then postponed for completion in May 2012, as the construction started late in November 2008, due to the unreasonable demand from UEM which caused the large delay. To reduce the cost of construction, its design is then modified, resemble to the first Penang Bridge. The bridge will be built with a large loan from the People's Republic of China. [1]

Overview
The planned bridge will be a four-lane dual carriageway bridge with two motorcycle lanes. Its total length is 24 km (15 miles). 17 km (10 miles) of the bridge will be across the South Channel, the channel between Penang Island and Seberang Perai. 1.5 km (1 miles) will be on the Batu Maung side, while 6 km (3 miles) will be on the Batu Kawan side. Six expressway interchanges will also be constructed as part of this project. K. Preamakanthan of UEM Construction Sdn Bhd is the project director responsible for this project.
It will have two observation platforms with rest and service areas at the central span. They are designed to resemble pearls. The rest area will be the first "floating" expressway rest area in Malaysia.

History
In August 2006, the Malaysian federal government unveiled a plan to build the Penang Second Bridge in the Ninth Malaysia Plan. In 12 November 2006, the groundbreaking ceremony for the new Penang Second Bridge was performed by Prime Minister of Malaysia, Dato' Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.
After months of soil survey work and test pilling work has been done, China Harbour Engineering Co Ltd and United Engineers Malaysia Berhad (UEM Group) announce that the project is on track for completion in 2011. Construction works was expected to begin in January 2008. [2]
On April 2008, the government announced that the project will be delayed by 9 months due to land acquisition and design issue and also the rising costs of building materials[3]. Newly elected Penang Chief Minister, Lim Guan Eng proposed a toll discount for any delays on the project[4] and also express disappointment of the delay of the construction[5].
On July 2008, Jelutong MP Jeff Ooi reported that the loan for the bridge risked being withdrawn if the shareholder agreement between UEM Builders Bhd and its joint-venture partner China Harbour Engineering Co Ltd is not inked by August 2008. It has been reported that there have been disagreements between the two parties on the apportionment of the cost of building the bridge although the issue should be resolved soon due to UEM having a variation on the price on its portion.[6]

On 8 November 2008, the construction of the Penang Second Bridge by China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC) has finally started.

Bridge specifications
Overall length - 24 km (15 miles)
Length over water - 17 km (10 miles)
Main span : Length - 250 m (-- feet)
Height clearance (above water) – 30 m (-- feet)
Number of vehicle lanes – 2 + 1 for motorcycles (each direction)
Targeted date to be opened to the public – May 2012
Overall cost – Around RM3 billion
Average time taken to drive from Batu Kawan to Batu Maung – 20 mins
Proposed speed limit on bridge – 80 km/h (-- mph)
Percentage of local contents to be used - 60%

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Magna mulling features of RM1.3b project

By Sharen Kaur
Published: 2009/03/25

Magna Prima Bhd (7617) may build luxury residences or office towers, or both, on the 1.05ha prime site in Jalan Ampang, Kuala Lumpur, which it is buying from a school association.

It is learned that Magna is finalising the development features, which will be market-driven."We are doing a study to decide on the best components. It may be office towers, or commercial and residential mix," an official said on condition of anonymity.The project, worth more than RM1.3 billion, will begin in 2012 and be completed in four years.It will be Magna's single largest development to date and its second project in the Kuala Lumpur City Centre area.The first was the RM300 million Avare condominium, neighbouring the Petronas Twin Towers near Jalan Stonor, launched in 2005."Magna aims to start the project in 2012 as it believes the economic situation will improve by then, thanks to the two stimulus packages launched by the government," the official added.The official said it may construct the buildings on its own, or in a venture with a reputable firm to be identified later.

Magna is buying the land on which the 44-year-old Lai Meng Primary School and Kindergarten sits from the Lai Meng Girls School Association for RM148 million.

It may use its own funds as well as borrow to pay for the land, the official said.Under the agreement, Magna is to rebuild the school and kindergarten on land it owns.It is unclear where Magna will rebuild the school.The company has pockets of land in Bukit Jalil and Jalan Kuching, Kuala Lumpur."We have not decided on the location. We will call for open tender to build the school, which will be at a choice location," the official said.

Analysts, who declined to be named, said that Magna is acquiring the land at a fair price and may sell the properties for between RM950 and RM1,000 per sq ft."Assuming 10 times plot ratio, construction cost of RM400 per sq ft and 80 per cent efficiency ratio, it would potentially translate into a total redevelopment cost of RM660 per sq ft, with average selling price of RM950 per sq ft, at 30 per cent margin," said an analyst.

Friday, March 20, 2009

BinLadin eyes Malaysian partners for bridge jo

From Zaidi Isham Ismail
Published: 2009/03/20

DUBAI: Saudi Arabia's largest construction group, the BinLadin group, may partner Malaysian companies to build a few causeway bridges in Jeddah.Its vice-president for project management, Mohammad Sawan, said discussions are on-going with several Malaysian firms."We are not new in Malaysia and have participated in the construction of several projects such as the Kuala Lumpur International Airport and the Putrajaya mosque. "We are keen to corroborate with Malaysia companies and are also looking at business opportunities in Malaysia," Mohammad told Malaysian journalists on the sidelines of the Malaysia Services Exhibition (MSE) 2009.
Mohammad declined to name the Malaysian companies.But some of the firms participating in the expo include Bina Puri, WCT, IJM Corp, and Sime Engineering.


He added the construction of the causeway bridges, each with a distance of over 100m, comes under a US$1.5 billion (US$1 = RM3.66) package and construction would take over three years.

The bridges would cater to the movement of two million pilgrims performing the haj every year.The BinLadin group has participated in the construction of more than 30 airports worldwide, universities, railways, and highways, among others.

Thursday, March 12, 2009

Water concession rescinded in Johor

Thursday March 12, 2009
Water concession rescinded in Johor
By YVONNE TAN

KUALA LUMPUR: Pengurusan Aset Air Bhd (PAAB) has sealed its third water restructuring agreement, this time with the state of Johor which will see it take over RM4.03bil worth of water-related assets in the state. This is the first agreement involving a private concessionaire.

PAAB’s acquisitions from the state of Malacca and Negri Sembilan which were completed in December and January respectively involved takeovers from the state governments.
PAAB chief executive officer Suhaimi Kamaralzaman said: “The most crucial achievement of this deal is getting SAJ Holdings Sdn Bhd, a private concessionaire, to migrate to the new licensing regime and rescind the current concession agreement (in the state).”

“When the concession no longer exists, the scheduled tariff hike in the concession agreement will not apply anymore; hence there will be no tariff hike for Johor this year,” he said at the signing of the agreements yesterday. Suhaimi said the water assets in Johor were acquired at one time book value and was concluded on a “willing-buyer-willing-seller” basis. The handover of water assets is part of the national water services industry restructuring initiative undertaken by the Government involving Peninsular Malaysia and Labuan. Following the migration to the new regime, consumers in Johor will not need to experience a tariff hike of up to 19% this year.

Meanwhile, under the agreements signed yesterday, government-owned PAAB will take over RM4.03bil worth of water-related assets such as water treatment plants, piping networks and reservoirs in Johor belonging to SAJ Holdings, Syarikat Air Johor Sdn Bhd (a unit of Ranhill Utilities) and Johor’s state government. To pay for the assets, PAAB will assume the parties’ related liabilities totalling RM3.18bil which include RM2bil SAJ Holdings Islamic bonds and bank loan.

SAJ will continue to manage the water distribution in the state and will lease the water assets from PAAB for operations and maintenance for a period of 30 years at an annual charge of about RM240mil.

Earlier, Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak who was also present at the ceremony said PAAB was expected to spend RM3.5bil in capital expenditure over the next 30 years to upgrade Johor’s water system.

On another note, Suhaimi said PAAB was looking to conclude its next deal with the state of Pahang. As for Selangor, he said PAAB was “expediting” its negotiations with Selangor’s private concessionaries.

Selangor, whose water sector is the most fragmented, is locked in a controversy where the state has made an offer to the four concessionaries involved but PAAB has initiated direct dealings with the concessionaires. A deal however, needs to be formalised by the end of the month or the concessionaires can mpose a 37% tariff hike on water in the state.

Ong: New LCCT to handle excess passenger load by 2011

Wednesday March 11, 2009

THE passenger load at the KL International Airport will exceed 20 million by 2011 and the new Low-Cost Carrier Terminal (LCCT) will cater to this increasing capacity, said Transport Minister Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat. He said the design capacity for the new LCCT would be around 30 million but the entire project would consist of various phases, which would allow room for further development.

“This is crucial because by 2011, we anticipate the delivery of bigger aircraft, including the Airbus A380 by Malaysia Airlines,” he said, adding that the present LCCT would not be able to handle the growing passenger load.

Ong said the new LCCT would be ready by 2011 and the total cost was estimated at RM2bil.
He said Malaysia Airports Hold­ings Bhd would announce the financial details, which were still being ironed out.

On the rebate of 50% on landing charges which would be given from April 1 to all airlines that operate from Malaysia, Ong said he was optimistic that the move would boost the aviation industry and attract more airlines to use KLIA as a regional hub.On whether such a move would affect Malaysia Airports financially, he said: “When you want to enjoy such incentives, you will certainly have to strike a balance.“You need to woo more airlines to come and there will be some degree of reduction in your revenue.”Currently, he said, there are 57 airlines operating from both LCCT and KLIA.

Ong, who is also MCA president, said he was impressed with the government-linked companies’ (GLCs) commitment to enhance corporate social activities in human capital development by establishing 10 non-profit private schools. He said GLCs, which also operated private universities such as Uniten and MMU, were not only helping youngsters study at higher education institutions but were also making corporate social responsibility a culture in the country.

In another development, all parties have welcomed the estimated RM250mil allocated for the Penang International Airport expansion.

State MCA deputy chairman Eng Hiap Boon said the allocation would boost Penang’s economy by attracting more tourists.“With the upgrading of airport facilities, I hope we can attract (more) tourists to Penang.“This also shows the Federal Government has not given up on Penang.”

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Irda submits proposed 10MP projects to Govt

Tuesday March 10, 2009
Irda submits proposed 10MP projects to Govt
By ZAZALI MUSA

JOHOR BARU: Iskandar Regional Development Authority (Irda) has submitted its plan to the Federal Government on the infrastructure projects slated for the 10th Malaysia Plan (10MP).
Executive director Harun Johari said that under the current 9MP, the Government had allocated RM6.83bil for infrastructure projects in Iskandar Malaysia.


“We are hoping to get a similar amount of budget or even more under the 10MP, which will start from 2011 until 2015,’’ he told StarBiz.

Harun said some of the projects within Iskandar Malaysia under the 9MP had already started while others would begin soon. All the projects would be completed between 2011 and 2015. Projects approved under the 9MP include road improvement packages, drainage works, river cleaning and public housing. All these projects are in various areas in five flagship zones in Iskandar – Johor Baru City Centre, Nusajaya, Eastern Gate Development, Western Gate Development and Senai.
...
About 80% of the investment in the development region came from the private sector and 20% from the Federal Government.
Iskandar Malaysia has to-date attracted RM43bil investment and the growth corridor is looking to receive RM93bil by 2025.

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

Gamuda rises on JPMorgan upgrade

Gamuda rises (to RM1.92) on JPMorgan upgrade
Published: 2009/03/04


GAMUDA Bhd rose 1.1 per cent to RM1.92 at lunch break, set for the biggest gain since Feb 27. Malaysia’s second-biggest builder was raised to “overweight” from “neutral” at JPMorgan, which said the company is in a
“comfortable position” to benefit from spending by the government’s stimulus package. - Bloomberg

MAHB identifies site for new budget terminal

MAHB identifies site for new budget terminal
Published: 2009/03/04

MALAYSIA Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB) has identified the site for the new Low-Cost Carrier Terminal (LCCT), said managing director/chief executive officer, Datuk Seri Bashir Ahmad.

"The site has been identified and we will announce at an appropriate time,"

Bashir told a media briefing held in conjunction with the Minister of Transport Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat's visit to the KL International Airport (KLIA)in Sepang today. The government recently turned down AirAsia's proposal to build a RM1.6billion airport in Labu, Negeri Sembilan. MAHB was then tasked with building a new LCCT, located near the present terminal at KLIA in Sepang, in close consultations with AirAsia.

"We can't reveal the discussion but it is on-going," he said, when asked on the progress of its negotiation with AirAsia Bhd on the new LCCT.

On pilferage in the airport, Bashir said MAHB committed to reduce and eliminate pilferage from its airport completely. "We are pushing for zero pilferage and we have taken steps over the year that the level of pilferage has reduced in our airport. "If we compare our airport to many other airports around the world, ours is very low," he said, but added that MAHB was still not happy. Meanwhile, Ong said the ministry has submitted many projects in the proposal to the Ministry of Finance to be included in the mini-budget. He said the projects will cover all the major sectors ranging from land transport, maritime as well as aviation. - Bernama

Monday, March 2, 2009

IRDA's next phase to improve services sector

BT 2/3/2009

THE Iskandar Regional Development Authority (IRDA), which oversees development of the Iskandar Malaysia region in Johor, said the second phase of investments there will be focused on improving the services sector.As highlighted in the Comprehensive Development Plan (CDP), it aims to attract total investments of RM73 billion between 2011-2015 in phase two.Under the first phase (2006-2010), it had secured RM40.25 billion from the initial RM47 billion.While it continues to promote the manufacturing sector given its strong base, it believes the second phase will remain to intensify its effort to boost the six services clusters in Iskandar, its former chief executive officer Datuk Ikmal Hijaz Hashim said.

"This provides Iskandar with added resilience to weather cyclical downturns in any particular sector," Ikmal told Business Times."We expect most of the committed investments from 2006-2010 to start their operations when we enter phase two, hence, further boosting the economic activities in the region," he added.IRDA has so far not received any official information of pullout or delay in any project by Arabs, or other investors in the region, Ikmal said.

From the RM40.25 billion in investments secured,
52 per cent is from manufacturing, and
20.3 per cent is real estate based.

Middle East companies have committed RM4.8 billion in real estate."The projects they are investing in are in various stages of implementation. For example, physical works in Medini have begun for the development of the basic infrastructure. Other projects are in the master plan design stage," he said.

The 888ha Medini, located within Iskandar, is Malaysia's single largest urban development. It is divided into three distinct clusters - lifestyle and leisure, culture and heritage, and financial.Projects in the pipeline include the Legoland Theme Park. A Newcastle University UK Medical University Campus is also being set up in Nusajaya in Iskandar
.

About Me

A seeker of success (whatever that means) treading on a path, searching, to return to the wholesomeness that was him when he was launched into this big school called Earth.