The Penang state government is planning to seek allocation for the Penang Transport Master Plan (PTMP), especially to finance the light rail transit system (LRT), from the federal government.

Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow said an application for funding will be submitted to Putrajaya after the necessary approvals for the project has been obtained from the relevant authorities.

"We did not submit the application earlier as there was doubt whether the PTMP proposal would be approved. We will submit once we obtain the approval for the project," Chow told reporters in Komtar today.

He was responding to Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng's remark that Putrajaya is willing to consider allocating funds for PTMP if there is an application from the state government.

Lim said in Penang yesterday that the Finance Ministry would study any potential application first before making an announcement because all aspects need to be considered.

PTMP is a RM46b mega project which is expected to address the state's traffic woes and connectivity via the Penang undersea tunnel, three-paired highways and the Pan-Island Link highway.

However, the massive project’s plans have been questioned by NGOs, who seek transparency and answers to the possible environmental damage caused by the project.

Chow noted that public transport is under the federal government's jurisdiction and that LRT is a public transport.

He said it is "quite natural" that the LRT project in Penang, being a public transport project, should also receive funds from the Transport Ministry and the federal government.

Chow agreed with Lim that the federal government would consider giving Penang "a progressive disbursement of funds".

"We understand that the funding will not be in a lump sum but over the duration of the construction period. This is done to ease the burden of the federal government, which is funding several other mega projects," he said.

"We would probably be given about RM1b or RM2b over a period of 5-8 years, until the project is completed," Chow said.

He said under the Malaysian Plans, the state government had been submitting proposals, although not specifically for LRT, for approval to the federal government.

Asked if the Penang South Reclamation (PSR) project was still necessary if the federal funding is approved for PTMP, Chow answered: “This is a frequently asked question".

Just like PTMP, the PSR has also been criticised by NGOs. PSR is a mega project which covers 4,500 acres of land and involves the creation of three artificial islands in the sea off the southern coast of Penang island.

He said PSR was not proposed merely to provide funding for PTMP but was designed to develop and prosper the state.

"If we obtain federal funding for PTMP, we will review the scale of PSR. However, the reclamation project is necessary to develop our land bank for the future," Chow said.

"If we do not have PSR, we cannot have the LRT, as the depot for the rail is planned on one of the reclaimed islands (Island A), which will take 6-7 years to build.”

Chow said it is important for Penang to continue to develop as the state is a key contributor to Malaysia’s foreign direct investment (FDI).

He noted that the state’s FDI for January to March this year was at 42% of Malaysia’s total FDI.

"The electrical and electronics sector take up most of the FDI, and this shows how important this sector is to the state and country," Chow said.