ECRL reports not done yet but Chinese envoy optimistic of deal

Negotiations between the contractor and owner of the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) are being held up by reports which have yet to be completed by both parties.

Chinese ambassador to Malaysia Bai Tian (above, extreme right) said he has yet to receive the said reports but stressed that both Malaysia and China were committed to overcoming the impasse.

Bai did not specify who the reports were intended for, or if there was a timeline for both parties.

"We are still optimistic. We hope by mutual respect, goodwill and in the spirit of mutual benefit, equal footing, the two businesses will come out with a win-win result," he said.

The owner of the ECRL is the Malaysian government while the contractor is the China Communications Construction Co Ltd (CCCC).

Bai was speaking to reporters while accompanying Transport Minister Anthony Loke on a tour of China Railway Rolling Stock Corporation's (CRRC) assembly plant in Batu Gajah, Perak today. CRRC is not involved in the ECRL project.

It was reported yesterday that Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad said that Malaysia was caught in a bind because it could not afford to continue with the ECRL project in its original form nor could the country afford the hefty compensation for scrapping it.

However, he said Malaysia was open to tweaking the project to make it cheaper, but China must first agree to this proposal.

The ECRL was initiated by Mahathir's predecessor Najib Abdul Razak and was reportedly supposed to cost RM55 billion at the time.

Mahathir's administration, however, estimated that the actual bill was closer to RM81 billion.

Both contractor, CCCC, and lender – the Export-Import Bank of China (Exim Bank of China) - are owned by the Chinese government. 

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