PUTRAJAYA: Singapore is open to proposals from Malaysia on reviving the high-speed rail (HSR), said Prime Minister Lawrence Wong today.
He said his government would keep an "open mind" on any new ideas, including if there were proposals to revive the HSR project.
"We hope to take stock of discussions between officials of both sides.
"And of course, along the way, there may be new ideas that open up. We are open to hearing from Malaysia if there are proposals for a HSR.
"If there are new ideas, we will keep an open mind, and discuss them in the right spirit of taking our relationship forward."
Wong said this at a joint press conference with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
In January this year, the NST reported that seven local and international consortia, comprising three firms, had submitted a request-for-information (RFI) concept proposal for the HSR project.
MyHSR launched the RFI in July last year as the Malaysian government explored reactivating the project to construct a 350km high-speed line between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore, which was cancelled in 2021, under a public-private partnership model.
The government is expected to shortlist candidates within several months and start full-fledged negotiations with the Singaporean government at the earliest later this year.
It was reported that the rail project, which would allow a shorter travel time of 90 minutes between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore, would include seven stations in Malaysia — Bandar Malaysia, Sepang-Putrajaya, Seremban, Melaka, Muar, Batu Pahat and Iskandar Puteri — and Jurong East in Singapore.
Last month, Transport Minister Anthony Loke said discussions about the proposed HSR with the Singaporean government would take place only after obtaining cabinet approval.
He had said the HSR proposal was still at the Transport Ministry level, and that he had informed his Singaporean counterpart Chee Hong Tat that there were discussions.
"We will have official discussions after receiving cabinet approval."