TOKYO: The Malaysia-Singapore high-speed rail (HSR) project is expected to be high on the agenda when Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak meets his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe on Wednesday.
Japan is expected to aggressively court the project - which at RM60 billion and RM65 billion - is set to be Malaysia's largest ever infrastructure endeavour.
Japan, which is competing with China, South Korea and several European suppliers, is offering its iconic Shinkansen bullet train system for the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore HSR link.
Najib, who starts his three-day working visit here tomorrow, just ahead of this weekend’s Apec summit in Lima, Peru, has already paid tribute to the iconic Shinkansen, which he said has a “strong international reputation.”
“As we proceed with the high-speed rail service between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore, I am sure the Shinkansen will be one of the leading contenders in the public tender for the project,” he said in a prepared response to a written interview by Japan’s Asahi Shimbun.
Najib also said Japanese companies have “excellent track record.”
Najib is due to meet Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Dec 5 to witness the signing of the definitive bilateral agreement to pave the way for the HSR project.