Singapore, Malaysia suspend work on high-speed rail link until end of year for discussion of changes

Analysts estimate the project, first announced by both nations in 2013, will cost about US$17 billion – though the two side have tried to renegotiate

Singapore’s transport minister said in a Facebook post on Sunday that the extension should provide sufficient time for Malaysia to clarify its proposal

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Singapore’s Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan, left, and Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong with then- Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak and former minister Abdul Rahman Dahlan, right, at a signing ceremony in 2016 for the rail project. Photo: EPA

Published: 6:55pm, 31 May 2020Updated: 7:28pm, 31 May 2020

Malaysia and neighbouring Singapore said on Sunday they had agreed to suspend until December 31 a high-speed rail project between Malaysia’s capital, Kuala Lumpur, and the city state, to allow discussion of changes.

Analysts estimate the project, first announced by both nations in 2013, will cost about US$17 billion, though the two have tried to renegotiate the terms of an initial pact.

“The government of Malaysia and the government of Singapore have agreed to resume discussions on the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore high speed rail infrastructure project in the near future,” said Mohamed Azmin Ali, Malaysia’s minister of international trade and industry.

“The discussions will encompass some of the proposed changes in the commercial and technical aspects of the project,” he said in a statement.

Singapore’s transport ministry said in a separate statement that it had agreed to a “final extension” and that it looked forward to receiving Malaysia’s formal proposal on the changes soon.