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368740
Tue, 05/26/2015 - 06:24
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PM Najib Believes Japan Can Make Competitive Bid For High-Speed Rail Project

KUALA LUMPUR, May 26 (Bernama) -- Prime Minister Najib Razak believes Japan can put in a competitive bid for the 300km high-speed rail project linking Kuala Lumpur and Singapore. "The Japanese shinkansen and rail technology is very competitive. I believe Japanese companies can put in a competitive bid," he said. Najib, who is on an official visit to Japan welcomed the country's bid for the project during an exclusive interview with the Nikkei Asian Review. Proposed in 2013, it is set to cut travelling time between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore to 90 minutes compared with about five hours by road, seven by train and an hour by plane. Both countries are finalising a feasibility study on the project, estimated at US$11.05 billion (RM40 billion). (US$1 = 3.61) Besides Japan, other countries that have expressed an interest in the project are China, South Korea, France, Germany, Britain and Spain. Najib, who is also the Finance Minister explained that the funding, operation system technology and rolling stock would be key factors in deciding who won the project. Companies bidding, need to also include long-term financing assistance, as well as the technology capability to build and operate the line. As for investments, the Prime Minister had said that Malaysia would continue to entice "high-impact" investments from the Japanese and other foreign companies by giving out a variety of incentives. The incentives in particular, will be tailored for companies that invest in automation and high-technology projects that create jobs for locals in designated economic development zones in Malaysia. "I would prefer companies to tell us directly if there is any request they have in mind," Najib was quoted as saying in the report. Malaysia is also supportive of Japan's pledge to offer $110 billion to fund infrastructure projects in Asia over the next five years, as it would sustain growth and development of local economies. On the territorial dispute in the South China Sea, the report had Najib saying that ASEAN would "foster discussions" with China to resolve the issue peacefully. "We hope countries that have an interest in respect of the South China Sea will not raise tensions [or] do anything that leads to instability," he added. Najib said under the ASEAN Economic Community, the 10 member countries in the region want to be recognised as a single market for production and have taken measures to reduce tax barriers and custom procedures to ease the movement of goods, services and human capital. To implement these in an effective way, the ASEAN Secretariat is considering increasing its workforce and annual budget, he added. -- BERNAMA

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