Some assessments, particularly in terms of cost still need to be done before the sale of the Bakun hydrolectric project to the Sarawak government is finalised, said Prime Minister Najib Razak.

 

He said negotiations were still going on between the federal and Sarawak governments on the costs involved as well as several other matters.

However, Najib declined to disclose a timeline for the negotiations to be concluded when asked about progress on the matter during a press conference after attending a meet-the-people session at the Uma Belor longhouse in the Sungai Asap resettlement scheme in Belaga today.

Najib, who was accompanied Sarawak Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud and federal and Sarawak ministers in meeting the people of the Ulu Belor longhouse, had earlier been scheduled to make a visit to the Bakun Dam but bad weather prevented his helicopter from making the flight from Bintulu.  

The Bakun project whose full capacity is 2,400 megawatts is expected generate an initial 300MW by June this year.

    

Costing RM7.3 billion, the project is owned by Sarawak Hidro Sdn Bhd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Finance Minister Inc.

Covering an area of 69,500 hectares, impoundment of the dam began on Oct 13 last year.

- Bernama