MRL, a special purpose vehicle wholly owned by Minister of Finance Incorporated, is the project and asset owner of the ECRL.

A pre-qualification (PreQ) exercise will be held at the end of this month to shortlist local contractors for the construction of the 640km rail alignment connecting the east coast states of Kelantan, Terengganu and Pahang before linking with Negeri Sembilan, Selangor and Putrajaya.

A Pre-Q notice advertisement will be issued by ECRL’s engineering, procurement, construction, commissioning (EPCC) contractor, China Communications Construction Company Ltd (CCCC) on Monday and Tuesday.

“The Pre-Q exercise is to tap eligible Malaysian contractors to participate in 40% of the project’s civil works,” said MRL in a statement today.

The exercise is open to all experienced local contractors who possess CIDB Grade G3 to G7 certification with a minimum of 2 Star SCORE rating, MRL said.

The documents must be submitted at CCCC counters to be opened at the Sime Darby Convention Centre (SDCC) on May 29 and 30.

It said a Pre-Q evaluation committee consisting of senior MRL and CCCC officials will evaluate the submissions and shortlist local contractors for subsequent stages as potential tenderers of the ECRL civil works packages.

MRL said a host of civil work packages, including earthworks, formation, soil improvement, foundation, structural, road and building works, will be subcontracted by CCCC to qualified contractors in areas where the ECRL traverse.

The ECRL project is expected to be completed by Dec 31, 2026.