Malaysian most ambitious rail project which has endured multiple delays and setbacks due to the pandemic is picking up pace, the East Coast Rail Link which is expected to be completed in December 2026, is currently 7.19 percent complete.
Chief Executive Officer of Malaysian Rail Sdn Bhd, Datuk Seri Darwis Abdul Razak said the project was proceeding smoothly despite a slight delay due to technical problems “we have experienced delays, but with the current development now, we can catch up. Overall, it can progress better this year.”
According to him, the Kelantan, Terengganu, Pahang, and Selangor alignments – Sections A, B, and C1 – will be completed in December 2026 and operational on Jan 1, 2027. Packages of land clearing and construction projects have been awarded out lately with local company’s bagging some of the mega jobs. The main contractor for ECRL is China Communications Construction Company which started working on the project in 2017.
Darwis added that land acquisition work for the ECRL project in Terengganu and Pahang was also currently progressing smoothly and had achieved 89 percent progress and expected to be resolved in 2023.
The project requires support from the states as it will require state land acquisition to keep cost from ballooning.
