SINGAPORE: The Land Transport Authority of Singapore (LTA) has formed a wholly-owned subsidiary, SG HSR Pte Ltd, to implement the Kuala Lumpur - Singapore High Speed Rail (HSR) project.
SG HSR will be Singapore’s infrastructure company for the HSR project, and will build, own, fund and maintain the civil infrastructure in the country.
This includes the HSR station in Jurong East, the tunnels and a share of the connecting bridge over the Straits of Johor.
SG HSR will work with its Malaysian counterpart, MyHSR Corp, to jointly appoint an assets company and an international operator through a fair and open international tender.
When the HSR services commence, SG HSR will also administer the various concessions.
“The HSR is an exciting bilateral project that will bring Singapore and Malaysia closer, and allow people to connect more conveniently and efficiently for business and leisure.
“SG HSR will provide stronger management focus and dedicated resources to handle the complexities of the project and meet the ambitious 2026 timeline. SG HSR will work under the close guidance of the LTA and the Ministry of Transport to ensure smooth implementation of the HSR project,” said LTA chief executive Ngien Hoon Ping in a statement.
SG HSR will have an initial share capital of S$1mil.
Alan Chan, LTA chairman, will concurrently be the chairman of SG HSR’s board of directors. Given that this is a long-term project with a significant construction phase (about eight years) before service begins, SG HSR is expected to receive funding support from the government in the initial years.
Meanwhile, Rama Venkta, has been appointed the managing director of SG HSR.
The Kuala Lumpur - Singapore HSR is a strategic project between the governments of Malaysia and Singapore and aims to facilitate a 90-minute travel time between both countries.
The project is also expected to enhance business linkages and bring the people of both countries closer.
The governments of both countries signed a bilateral agreement on Dec 13, 2016, which captured the key points of agreement on the project, including the technical parameters, commercial model, customs, immigration and quarantine clearance, safety and security matters, regulatory framework and project management approach.
As part of the next phase of the project preparation, the two governments have tasked MyHSR Corp and SG HSR respectively to implement the project. - Bernama
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