MP SPEAKS The BN-led federal government continues to bail out water concessionaire Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor (Syabas) despite ongoing negotiations for takeover by the Selangor government and the battle against persistent budget deficit and rising debt.

Yesterday, Puncak Niaga Holdings Bhd announced that the federal government has extended a further RM151 million in soft loans to its subsidiary Syabas, purportedly to replace old and critical pipes in Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya,and to reduce non-revenue water losses in Selangor, which is among the highest nationwide.    

Syabas is given a three-year grace period to commence repayment of the loans and will be charged a subsidised interest rate of only 3 percent. This comes just eight months after a RM120 million soft loan was extended to the company to carry out the same works.