Water, Land and Natural Resources Minister Dr Xavier Jayakumar(pic) said the RM2.55bil price tag on the proposed buyout of Syarikat Pengeluar Air Sungai Selangor Sdn Bhd (Splash) was
KUALA LUMPUR: A meeting will be held soon with Pahang state authorities to discuss the future of bauxite mining there said Water, Land and Natural Resources Minister Dr Xavier Jayakumar.
"I have now asked for another meeting with the Mentri Besar and his team to talk to me about the future of bauxite mining in Pahang.
"We want to know if they are interested in pursuing it or that they want to say that they don't want bauxite mining in Pahang," he told reporters at Parliament lobby on Thursday (Aug 2).
He noted that it was up to the Pahang state government to decide on bauxite mining as mining permits came under under the state's purview.
Dr Xavier said the meeting with Pahang MB Datuk Seri Wan Rosdy Wan Ismail will take place before he meets industry players.
"I will then hold another meeting with industry players to get their views on the matter," he added.
He said he recently met up with state elected representatives and members of Parliament from Pahang to brief them on the current situation.
The discussions, he added, also touched on matters such as environmental degradation due to bauxite mining and remaining stockpile there.
The moratorium on bauxite mining, Dr Xavier said, would be enforced till Dec 31 this year.
Asked if Pahang royalty was also involved in bauxite mining, Dr Xavier said that he did not wish comment on this.
Last Wednesday (July 25), those involved in the bauxite mining scene in Felda Bukit Goh wanted the Government to give an answer as to whether they can continue mining activities.
In Jan 2016, a moratorium on bauxite mining in Pahang was imposed following public uproar over enviromental degradation.
It was estimated that some 20mil tons of bauxite was mined in Pahang in 2015.
Last August, the Malaysian Anti Corruption Commission (MACC) seized some 10mil tons of bauxite pending graft investigations but revoked the order in December.
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