Perak menteri besar Saarani Mohamad said discussions are in the final stages, Bernama reported.

He said the focus now was on reviewing the draft agreement between the concession company and the federal government.

The draft concession agreement is being reviewed by the Attorney-General’s Chambers.

“The agreement will be signed once it is finalised, allowing the concession company to begin the construction of the expressway,” Saarani said after officiating the 27th annual general meeting of the Masjid Perak Cooperative in Ipoh today.

The new road is expected to alleviate congestion on the North-South Expressway, especially around the Menora Tunnel. Many lorries now struggle to pass through the hilly stretch and many accidents have occurred there.

The new 60km highway will feature three lanes in both directions. It will start from Gopeng and pass through Batu Gajah, Siputeh, Manong, Tronoh, Beko and Seri Iskandar before ending in Kuala Kangsar.

On a separate matter, Saarani announced that representatives from South Korea’s Star Group Industries recently visited several locations in Perak with plans to establish a magnet manufacturing plant.

The locations included Kamunting in Taiping, Bandariang in Gerik and the Silver Valley Technology Park in Kanthan, Ipoh.

“We informed them that Perak possesses minerals, including non-radioactive rare earth elements.

“We convinced them to visit Perak and they verified the information. They were pleased with what they saw. I am confident they will invest here,” he said.

In April, Saarani and a state government delegation went on an eight-day working visit to South Korea to attract investments to Perak, particularly in the mineral industry.