In explaining why an extension was given to Lynas to find a new PDF, deputy science, technology and innovation minister Ahmad Amzad Hashim said Lynas had to search for a new site as the status of Bukit Ketam – the initially proposed site – as a forest reserve had yet to be “clarified” at that time.

Lynas, he said, needed time to get an alternative site approved by the Pahang state government. This also involved a lot of technical studies, and legal aspects had to be considered, he added.

“The movement control order restricted such things,” he said in response to a supplementary question by Fuziah Salleh (PH-Kuantan).

Fuziah had asked why Lynas had been given a six-month extension despite “failing” to meet the requirement of building a PDF to renew its operating licence.

In August, Lynas was granted an extension to build a PDF for low-level radioactive waste from its plant at Gebeng, Pahang, with authorities saying they recognised the “constraints presented by the current Covid-19 conditions”.

Amzad also said it was not true that Lynas’ licence had been extended till March 2022.

“The current licence expires on March 2, 2032.”

In July, Malaysiakini reported that the Department of Environment had rejected Lynas’ proposal to build a PDF in Bukit Ketam and that it was looking for an alternative site.