State executive councillor in charge of infrastructure and transport Zairil Khir Johari said reminder letters have been issued to the Penang Port Commission (PPC) and Penang Port Sdn Bhd (PPSB) to secure their feedback on the project, which is intended to connect Gurney Drive on the island and Bagan Ajam in Butterworth.
“The study has been delayed as it involves several stakeholders, including federal agencies and the private sector,” he said in a written reply to a question by opposition leader Yusoff Noor (BN-Sungai Dua).
“We are waiting for written comments from two crucial agencies so that the state government can make a decision on the execution of the project,” he said, referring to both PPC and PPSM.
Zairil also said the state government is expected to come to its decision after a meeting with PPC scheduled for early December. The meeting is expected to be the last one before a decision is made, he said.
He said findings of the feasibility studies, which were presented to the state government in April, have already been accepted.
“However, the (full) report will only be received after a final review of the expansion master plan for the North Butterworth Container Terminal (NBCT), carried out by PPC, is officially received.
“At the moment, PPC is yet to finalise the NBCT expansion master plan,” he said.
Zairil also explained that the transition of the undersea tunnel project to the design phase is subject to the integration of the tunnel design with the NBCT master plan.
He said the timeline for execution of the project will depend on that integration.
To date, no payments have been made for the project as the reports have not been finalised and accepted by the state government, he said.
“So far, the state government has made an in-kind payment amounting to RM208.8 million to submit a written review on the feasibility studies and detailed designs for the three main road projects,” he said.
On March 11, chief minister Chow Kon Yeow said the state government had not made any decision on the feasibility study which was tabled before the state executive council in February.
The study, which began in December 2014 and should have been completed in 2016, was postponed for various reasons.
The Penang government has not rejected the possibility of building a bridge instead of the tunnel as the island’s third link to the mainland.
The 6.5km undersea tunnel and three new roads were among projects proposed under the Penang Transport Master Plan (PTMP), valued at RM46 billion.
On March 31, PPC and PPSB welcomed the state government’s proposal to build the undersea tunnel as part of the PTMP.
Commission chairman Tan Teik Cheng was reported by Bernama as saying that both parties welcomed the project. However, he added that in the best interests of the state, priority should be given to the development of the Penang port.