GEORGE TOWN: The Penang government is waiting for recommendations from the state steering committee before making any decision on the Penang undersea tunnel project's implementation.
Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow said the state executive council had just been briefed by the Penang Port Commission on its 30-year PPC Development Master Plan (2023-2053).
Based on the presentation, the North Butterworth Container Terminal (NBCT)'s expansion plans would be partly affected by the proposed undersea tunnel project.
"As the project owner, we need to make a decision (whether to proceed with the tunnel project).
"For that, we will await the state steering committee's recommendations
"We need to see if we will proceed with the undersea tunnel project, make adjustments to the alignment or the design... all that will be looked into.
"All this is vital as we are talking about Penang's future development," he told reporters at his office in Komtar here today.
Penang Port Sdn Bhd (PPSB) chief executive officer Datuk Sasedharan Vasudevan had reportedly said NBCT's expansion plans would proceed, and that RM250 million would be spent over the next three years.
Last November, the state government said it would only consider implementing the undersea tunnel project after the finalisation of the NBCT expansion masterplan by the PPC.
It was reported that the project delivery partner for the undersea tunnel and three highways, Consortium Zenith Construction (CZC), had completed the feasibility study at the end of 2020, after a four-year delay, and submitted it to the state government in December the same year.
The feasibility study, which started in December 2014, was supposed to be completed in 2016 but it was delayed for various reasons.
In September 2019, CZC presented the draft feasibility report and it was amended for improvements based on reviews from various relevant agencies.
The undersea tunnel is part of a RM6.3 billion mega project in the state.
It was also reported that the Penang government had not ruled out the possibility of a third bridge to replace the undersea tunnel project connecting the island and the mainland.
