Speaking to The Guardian, Anwar, who is on a four-day visit to London, said the Battersea station would be probed as part of “dubious” investments made by the previous Barisan Nasional government.

“All these deals which are considered dubious, including investments in housing in London, will have to be investigated.

“Yes, that includes Battersea. Because they were made using state funds. We have to be convinced that this was the right investment decision and that there was no political influence or direction (within Malaysia),” he told the UK paper.

The Battersea Power Station is an industrial building which is being turned into homes, offices and shops by a Malaysian consortium led by property developer SP Setia.

It was sold to the consortium in 2012 for £400 million, with the project scheduled for completion in late 2020.

Early this year, SP Setia said it was in discussions about a potential sale with government-linked investment firm Permodalan Nasional Bhd (PNB) and the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) for £1.6 billion.

The proposal was to sell Phase 2 of the project, the building itself, but not the surrounding land which is also in the process of being redeveloped.

PNB and EPF, which already own about 70% of the project through direct stakes and their holdings in the current developers, said the move was purely an investment consideration.

They added that the potential sale was being explored without any government intervention.

“EPF and PNB are steadfast and committed to upholding the trust of the two institutions’ members and unit holders respectively, as well as the Malaysian public, and any inferences that investment decisions are made for any other reason than for the benefit of the people are completely false and malicious,” they said in a joint statement.

EPF, PNB assure no govt meddling in Battersea investment bid

PNB, EPF in talks to buy London’s Battersea for RM8.8 billion