KUALA TERENGGANU: The northeast monsoon, expected to start as early as the fourth week of this month, will not affect the construction of the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) project, Transport Minister Anthony Loke said.
The Malaysia Rail Link Sdn Bhd (MRL), Loke said, has made thorough preparations, considering all factors and risks, including constructing higher tracks in flood-prone areas to ensure they are not easily impacted by potential flooding.
"Everything has been taken into account, and I am confident that they have planned meticulously because they are aware of the weather conditiuons in the East Coast states.
"MRL has also had several years of experience, and I believe they can execute their work according to schedule," he said after attending the Signing and Exchange of Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) ceremony between Eastern Pacific Industrial Corporation Bhd (EPIC) and MRL here today.
Earlier, Anthony, along with Terengganu Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar, witnessed the signing and exchange of the MoU between EPIC and MRL.
Also present were Eastern Pacific Industrial Corporation Bhd chief executive officer Muhtar Suhaili and MRL CEO Datuk Seri Darwis Abdul Razak.
Meanwhile, Loke said that the ECRL project corridor, which crosses the states of Kelantan, Terengganu, Pahang, and Selangor, has recorded an overall progress of 72.93 per cent as of last month.
This encouraging progress, he said, is in line with the schedule for completing the ECRL corridor from Kota Baru to the Gombak Integrated Terminal by December 2026.
He added that the rail corridor between Gombak and Port Klang is expected to be fully completed by December 2027.
He added that the construction of the ECRL project in Terengganu is also smooth, achieving progress of 87.4 per cent as of September, making Terengganu the state with the highest percentage under this mega project.
"As such, I am confident that with this progress, we can meet our timeline by Jan 1, 2027, when the train service from Kota Baru to Gombak must commence," he said.