KUALA LUMPUR, July 2 — The channelling of raw water from Perak River to Bukit Merah Dam, which is partly implemented to support the Kerian Integrated Green Industrial Park (KIGIP) project, is expected to be able to supply the projected need of 1,500 million litres of water per day to northern Perak and Penang, the Dewan Rakyat was told today.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said this would inadvertently fulfil the water supply needs in the Seberang Perai Selatan area and KIGIP, in addition to solving water woes in Kerian, Larut Matang and Selama districts in the future.

"The projection shows that Perak River’s capacity can reach up to 1,500 million litres per day, which meets the needs in northern Perak and the whole of Penang.

"This is why the government agreed with the large funding, but it shall be managed through the cooperation of Permodalan Nasional Berhad (PNB), Sime Darby, SD Guthrie Berhad and the Perak state government,” he said during the Minister’s Question Time.

Anwar said this in reply to Datuk Muhammad Bakhtiar Wan Chik (PH-Balik Pulau) who wanted to know the direction of the KIGIP project in boosting domestic investment aligns with the Energy Transition Roadmap while also balancing the needs of nearby areas, such as addressing the water supply issues in Seberang Perai Selatan.

The prime minister said that although Kedah had expressed its desire to supply raw water for the said areas, the volume was relatively small, which is only 25 million litres per day, while the initial requirement in northern Perak, namely Larut Matang, Kerian and Selama, reached 300 million litres per day.

"The capacity of the Perak River, if given an injection of funds to manage the river more effectively, can meet the needs of Penang, or most of it, with approximately 700 million litres a day,” he said.

He said the raw water channelling project from Perak River to Bukit Merah Dam with an allocation of RM4 billion is expected to start this year.

"This project is simple because the land in Kerian belongs to Sime Darby. So, there is no acquisition issue involving the 1,000 acres (404 hectares) of land. Once they agreed, the Perak government agrees to expedite it,” he said.

KIGIP is an industrial park project that will be powered by solar energy as the main green energy source, with the first phase involving the development of 404 hectares of land.

With a strategic location, which is close to the electrical and electronics (E&E) sector hub in Penang and Kulim Hi-Tech Park (KHTP) in Kedah, KIGIP will complement the rapid spillover demand of the industry. — Bernama