KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 6): Tenders for the beautification portion of the River of Life (RoL) programme, potentially worth up to RM1 billion, could be called in the second half (2H) of this year upon completion of the project's master plan.
Kuala Lumpur Mayor Tan Sri Ahmad Fuad Ismail said a total of RM4 billion had been earmarked by the Federal government for the RoL programme to transform the Klang River, a project identified under the Economic Transformation Plan (ETP), that involves the cleaning of 110km stretch of river basin and beautification along a 10.7km stretch within the city centre.
Of the amount, some RM3 billion is for river cleaning, which is already underway, while the remaining RM1 billion is for beautification works.
(From left) Ahmad Fuad, Ministry of Federal Territories and Urban Wellbeing secretary-general Datuk Ahmad Phesal Talib and Aecom chief executive Dickson Lo at the signing ceremony on Thursday. Photo: Mohd Izwan Mohd Nazam of The Edge Malaysia
(From left) Ahmad Fuad, Ministry of Federal Territories and Urban Wellbeing secretary-general Datuk Ahmad Phesal Talib and Aecom chief executive Dickson Lo at the signing ceremony on Thursday.
Mohd Izwan Mohd Nazam of The Edge Malaysia
Ahmad Fuad said the master plan for the beautification portion would be ready within six months, with a total of 11 precincts along the 10.7km stretch having been identified for beautification.
"Once the master plan is ready then we can call for tender," the mayor said on Thursday after a signing ceremony with Aecom Perunding Sdn Bhd. Aecom was chosen to work with the Kuala Lumpur City Hall to produce the master plan after it won the River of Life Masterplanning International Competition held between April and June last year.
Besides producing the master plan, Aecom will also come up with a detailed design for the Masjid Jamek area, also known as precinct 7.
The project, which is expected to kick off next year, is expected to be completed in stages by year 2020.
Among the highlights for the project are a walkway along the river bank, public recreational spaces and tourist attractions.
While confident of the merits of the programme aimed at transforming the area into a vibrant and liveable waterfront district of high economic value, Ahmad Fuad pointed out the need for a change in attitude for RoL to be a complete success.
"A total of 20 tonnes of rubbish are fished out from the river daily," he told reporters at a press conference.
"This attitude [issue] continues to pose a challenge [for the project's] success."
In August last year, The Edge Financial Daily reported that the government had ordered a freeze on all transactions of government-owned land near the Klang River in the city centre pending efforts to clean up the river.
The freeze was to allow better value to be extracted from the land at a later date, with a beautiful riverfront as a value enhancer, Ahmad Fuad said.
Last December, Ekovest-MRCB JV Sdn Bhd, a 60-40 joint-venture between Ekovest Bhd and Malaysian Resources Corp Bhd (MRCB), announced that it had been appointed the project delivery partner (PDP) of the RM2.2 billion river rehabilitation and beautification project.
As the PDP, the JV stand to receive 1% of the project's estimated value, or about RM22 million, as compensation for managing or coordinating the river rehabilitation and beautification project for three years.
