ALOR STAR: Kedah Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor has urged the Economy Ministry to expedite the approval of a Notice of Change (NoC) for the purchase of private land needed for the expansion of Phase 5 of the Kulim Hi-Tech Park (KHTP).
Sanusi said the ministry was taking too long to approve the application, as the state government urgently needed the NoC to proceed with the land purchasing process.
According to Sanusi, the state had obtained an RM187 million loan from the federal government for the land acquisition for the expansion, but it was stalled because the land price had gone up beyond the initial price when the price assessment was carried out.
"So, the loan that we obtained (from the federal government) is insufficient to proceed with the acquisition, so we decided to change from land acquisition to a land purchasing method after negotiating with another company that owns a piece of adjacent land.
"According to the procedure, we need to acquire approval from the Economy Minister for the NoC.
"It has been a year now. I don't know what is taking them so long. We have sent a note to the minister (Rafizi Ramli) and a note to the Prime Minister (Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim)," he said in a press conference after launching the Greater Kedah blueprint at Seri Mentaloon here today.
Present were state assembly speaker Zubir Ahmad, State Secretary Datuk Seri Norizan Khazali and State Industry and Investment Committee chairman Dr Haim Hilman Abdullah.
Sanusi added that the state government urgently need the NoC approval as the company has set a deadline for the state to settle the purchasing process.
"We have locked the (purchasing) price. If we fail to meet the deadline, we will have to renegotiate the price.
"Discussion at the officers' level has been completed, but it is stuck at the minister's level, I don't understand what is derailing the approval," he said.
Sanusi said the onus is on the Cabinet ministers to expedite the investment process, in line with the prime minister's wish to enhance the country's competitiveness in attracting investors.
While presenting the 2025 Budget in Parliament recently, Anwar, who is also the finance minister, confirmed that the government would not pursue mega projects.
Instead, he said the focus was on people-centric initiatives and support for industrial areas based on state priorities, which includes expanding KHTP to accommodate semiconductor manufacturers like Infineon Technologies AG.