They are expected to discuss the proposed construction of three new ports along the Straits of Melaka.
In addition, a high-powered Malaysian delegation will leave for Beijing later this week to discuss the Bandar Malaysia project.
The visits are a follow-up to the infrastructure initiatives Prime Minister Najib Razak and Chinese President Xi Jinping discussed two weeks ago on the sidelines of the high-profile One Belt, One Road conference in Beijing.
The Straits Times (ST) quoted unnamed Malaysian government officials as saying the flurry of activities was to ensure that the deals could be formalised later this year during a visit by Xi to Kuala Lumpur.
According to the ST report, the 35-member Chinese delegation to Malaysia will be led by China’s Public Security Minister Guo Shengkun.
Tomorrow, Gua and Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi are expected to discuss funding options and implementation timelines for the development of the Melaka Gateway port, a port on Selangor’s Carey Island, and a dedicated energy port in Bagan Datoh, Perak.
The report quoted an unnamed senior home ministry official as confirming the talks.
The ST report said the port in Bagan Datoh was mooted by Zahid when he met Chinese officials in Beijing in January.
Planners for the energy port in Bagan Datoh, which is in home minister Zahid’s parliamentary constituency, are proposing an oil pipeline that will cut across Peninsular Malaysia and reach Bachok, a coastal town in the eastern state of Kelantan facing the South China Sea.
The ST report, quoting government sources, said it could cost RM30 billion to construct this port.
Later this week, the ST report said, finance ministry secretary-general Irwan Serigar Abdullah was scheduled to lead a delegation to Beijing to meet potential partners to develop Bandar Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur.
It quoted government officials as saying that Irwan, the new point man for Bandar Malaysia, was expected to hold talks with Chinese state-owned enterprises such as China Overseas Land and Investment and the Greenland Group as well as private sector firms such as Dalian Wanda.
Earlier this month, the government abruptly terminated a deal with a consortium – made up of Iskandar Waterfront Holdings and China Railway Engineering Corp – to spearhead the 97ha Bandar Malaysia project.