As the Finance Ministry moves to pare down the cost of the underground portion of the MRT2 project, new information suggests that contractors MMC-Gamuda had subcontracted several portions of the project to competitors who joined the bidding process.

In April 2016, Putrajaya’s One-Stop Procurement Committee, chaired by then-prime minister Najib Abdul Razak, had awarded the contract to a joint venture company involving MMC Corp Bhd and Gamuda Bhd (MMC-Gamuda).

Two other China-owned firms participated in the bid – the China Communications Construction Corporation (CCCC) and China Railway Engineering Corporation (Crec)...