The International Enterprise Singapore (IE Singapore) has brought together six Singapore companies to team up with international players for the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore High-Speed Rail (KL-SG HSR) project.
The firms involved in the project are Clifford Capital Pte. Ltd., DBS, Sembcorp Design & Construction, SMRT International Pte Ltd, Surbana Jurong Private Limited and Singapore Technologies Electronics Limited (ST Electronics).
To recall, the high-speed rail project is spearheaded by the governments of Singapore and Malaysia to facilitate seamless travel between the Kuala Lumpur and Singapore. The project also eyes to enhancing the business linkages. Spanning 350 kilometres, the rail line is targetted to be operational by the end of 2026.
The collaboration of the companies is in line with IE Singapore's mission to help Singapore firms take global opportunities.
"The partnership leverages unique strengths of each company, enabling them to expand into the high-speed rail segment. Together, their solutions cover the entire value chain of financing, design, construction, system integration, operations and maintenance," IE Singapore said in a statement to the media.
Meanwhile, Sembcorp Design & Construction CEO Yam Ah Mee said the collaboration would be able to combine the expertise of each company and their reputations in their respective sectors.
"By banding together, we have a stronger value proposition, combining many years of track record across the rail value chain. We plan to work with international partners with relevant rail experience as we participate in various aspects of the KL-SG HSR. Our wealth of local operating knowledge in Malaysia and Singapore is complementary," he said in a statement.
On the other hand, Surbana Jurong CEO Teo Eng Cheong noted how the project could be strategic, noting that this "opens up a new sector of growth for companies in the infrastructure space."
IE Singapore Environment and Infrastructure Solutions Group Director Kow Juan Ting agreed to this, saying the high-speed rail is a key growth area in the transport infrastructure.
"This partnership between the six companies is crucial for building capabilities in new infrastructure verticals. IE Singapore will continue to drive the interests of Singapore companies in key infrastructure projects," he noted.