RM6.2b for takeover of 4 highways not final: deputy minister

The RM6.2 billion price tag that the government has offered to take over four toll highway concessions in the Klang Valley is not final, Deputy Finance Minister  Amiruddin Hamzah said.

The government, he said, will carry out a due diligence process to determine the final value of the highways.

“If the due diligence process finds that the value is too low or too high ... something must be done. The value is not final,” he told media at the Islamic Finance Innofest 2019 today.

According to him, what is important for the Pakatan Harapan government is to fulfil its election manifesto of reducing and eliminating tolls.

“The bottom line is that we hope it will have a positive impact on road users and it will not burden the government financially,” he said.

In June this year, the Finance Ministry issued an official offer to take over four highways in the Klang Valley, namely Lebuhraya Damansara Puchong (LDP), Sistem Penyuraian Trafik KL Barat (SPRINT), Lebuhraya Shah Alam (KESAS) dan the SMART Tunnel.

The proposal to take over the four highways was made to Gamuda Bhd, the concessionaire of the four highways.

Yesterday, it was reported that the proposed takeover by the government has been put on hold for price evaluation.

Meanwhile, during the event today, organised by the International Centre for Education in Islamic Finance (INCEIF), the Deputy Minister launched a report titled “Harnessing Value-based Intermediation: the Role of Development Financial Institutions”.

“The financial sector, regulators, policymakers and consumers would benefit from the findings of this report and use it as reference for a comprehensive overview on sustainable financing, and hopefully this report could guide them towards a more sustainable and inclusive financial sector,” Amiruddin said in his speech.

- Bernama