Selangor investment, trade and mobility committee chairman Ng Sze Han said the two companies, Asia Mobility Technologies Sdn Bhd (Asia Mobiliti) and Badanbas Coach Sdn Bhd were part of a proof of concept bus-on-demand process.
A proof of concept (POC) is a feasibility study to prove that an idea is workable.
According to Ng, the two companies were awarded the POC licence after going through the request for proposal (RFP) process.
“It was not via direct negotiations as claimed by some quarters.”
Questions arose on the possibility of preferential treatment following revelations that Asia Mobiliti was one of two companies the state government had given the project to without going through an open tender.
The company’s CEO, M Ramachandran, is married to youth and sports minister Hannah Yeoh.
Ng had previously defended the selection of the two companies saying they were approved by the Land Public Transport Agency (Apad) and federal regulators.
Ng went on to reveal that the POC licence that was awarded by Apad to the two companies will expire on Aug 31.
“It is not valid for decades, nor would it be automatically renewed.”
He said that this stipulation was the basis for the decision by the state government to select the companies, which had also set the POC period for nine months, from November 2023 to July 2024.
“This means that the POC period would end before the licence awarded by Apad to the two companies expires.”
Ng also said that the state government had in early May received a proposal by Kumpool Sdn Bhd to take part in the POC process.
He said that Kumpool, which runs an e-hailing van service that covers over 120 stops in central Petaling Jaya, had been given the green light by Apad to join the POC.
“The proposal is currently being considered for the next phase.”
Meanwhile, communications minister Fahmi Fadzil also said the DRT project has not been awarded to Asia Mobiliti as claimed.
Speaking to reporters after today’s Cabinet meeting, Fahmi said Asia Mobiliti had only been appointed to run a POC for a nine-month period.