The first phase of the Bandar Malaysia development, which has a gross development value (GDV) of RM50 billion to RM60 billion and will be developed over five years, is set to kick off next year.

Executive vice-chairperson of Iskandar Waterfront Holdings Sdn Bhd (IWH), Lim Kang Hoo, said the first phase will include the development of 5,000 units of affordable homes and the mass rapid transit and light rail transit development, among others.

"The total project, which consists of three to four phases, will take up to 25 years and will have a total GDV of around RM200 billion," he said.

Lim said this to reporters after the signing ceremony of the shareholder agreement with IWH CREC Sdn Bhd in Kuala Lumpur today.

Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak witnessed the ceremony.

IWH CREC is a 60:40 joint venture company between IWH and China Railway Engineering Corp (CREC).

Under the agreement, IWH CREC and Ministry of Finance Inc will hold 60:40 stake in equity respectively in Bandar Malaysia Sdn Bhd (BMSB), the joint-venture company that will spearhead the development.

BMSB has also signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with MRCB Bhd to set up a joint-venture company to design, develop and construct integrated transport area for the project.

Another MOU was signed today among a consortium of international, Chinese and Malaysian banks to provide funding for investors in the Bandar Malaysia project.

Among the banks involved are Bank of China and HSBC Bank Malaysia Bhd, which teamed up with local banking groups such as CIMB Bank Bhd, Malayan Banking Bhd, RHB Bank Bhd and Affin Bank Bhd.

- Bernama