The Selangor government is seeking the federal government's assistance in solving the water impasse, as its offer to the four water concessionaires expired at 5pm today.

ceramah selamatkan malaysia pas shah alam 090111 khalid ibrahim In a statement today, Selangor Menteri Besar Abdul Khalid Ibrahim ( right ) said that although one company, Abbas, had accepted the offer, it has still lapsed because it was conditional to the acceptance of all four concessionaires.

"We urge the federal government to consult with the state government and together find the best way possible to return the right to affordable water back to the people," he said.

Selangor had on Jan 6 offered to take over Puncak Niaga (M) Sdn Bhd, Bekalan Air Selangor Sdn Bhd (Syabas), Abbas Sdn Bhd and Syarikat Air Selangor Sdn Bhd (Splash) for a total of RM9.3 billion.

According to Abdul Khalid, Splash rejected the officer on Jan 27, while Syabas and Puncak Niaga sought clarification and were responded to "promptly".

"While we regret this development, the State will have discussions with the federal government with regards to next steps and will jointly decide on how best to proceed," he said.

Abdul Khalid added that his government has offered to find a consensus in terms of a fair offer price through international arbitration, but has yet to receive a response from the companies.

selangor protest against syabas 20101205 supporters with yellow flower 02 The Selangor water issue came to a height in Dec 5 when the government led a street march to the Agong's Palace seeking intervention on the issue.

The state argues that it intends to take over the concessionaires to ensure fair tariffs and has refused to allow Syabas to increase its tariffs despite the company's insistence that this is stipulated in their contract.

The Selangor government contends that Syabas has not met the requirements to increase tariffs due to high water wastage (non-revenue water).

"The state is aware that there are bonds related to (the four) companies that may be in default in the near future...due purely to Syabas' failure to make sufficient and timely payments to Abbas and Splash.

"Instead of paying the two water treatment providers, Syabas has instead made dividend payments and continue to pay their chief executive officer as much as RM425, 000 a month," he said.