KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 7): The Ministry of Works said the government is not involved in the appointment process for the multi-lane free flow (MLFF) toll collection system, stressing it is purely up to highway concessionaires to select who they want to partner with.
The implementation of MLFF will be undertaken on a purely business-to-business basis and will result in no financial burden being borne by government coffers, the Works Ministry told The Edge on Thursday.
This was decided in a Cabinet meeting on July 25 this year, the ministry noted.
The Works Ministry clarified that it did not issue a request for proposal to select a company or consortium to undertake the project on the implementation of the MLFF.
The clarification is in response to The Edge’s article titled “Six bidders said to be vying for multi-lane free flow toll collection system contract” published on Nov 3-9.
It is understood that the government will have a guideline on certain areas for the concessionaires to follow to ensure a degree of similarity in each MLFF system implemented for the convenience of road users.
Back in August, Deputy Works Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Maslan said highway concessionaires have two years to finalise their partners to implement the MLFF system.
The MLFF system is a barrierless tolling solution that aims to replace booth-based toll collection on 33 highways nationwide using overhead gantries equipped with radio-frequency identification (RFID) and automated number plate recognition technology.
In 2022, the government appointed a joint venture between Konsortium Jaringan Selangor Sdn Bhd (KJS) and SEP Synergy (M) Sdn Bhd as the central tolling company for the RM3.5 billion barrierless toll system.
However, the Public Accounts Committee later flagged the appointment for potentially conflicting with existing concession agreements that grant exclusive toll collection rights to the highway operators.
Earlier this year, Ahmad Maslan confirmed the appointment of the KJS-SEP Synergy joint venture had lapsed after it failed to reach an agreement with highway concessionaires by Dec 16, 2024.