Credit : Datuk Amar Fadillah Yusof's X
KUALA LUMPUR, October 30, 2026 — Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Amar Fadillah Yusof has welcomed an agreement that repurposes RM5 billion in loans from China to finance the Northern Perak Water Supply Scheme (NPWSS), a project expected to strengthen long-term water supply for Perak and Penang.
In a post shared on X on Friday evening, Fadillah, who is also Energy Transition and Water Transformation Minister, said he had joined Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim in witnessing the signing of the agreement between Suria Strategic Energy Resources Sdn Bhd (SSER) and the Export-Import Bank of China (CEXIM) at Sasana Kijang, Bank Negara Malaysia, in Kuala Lumpur.
He wrote that the agreement allows the RM5 billion loan to be channelled again to fund the NPWSS, and that the project is expected to strengthen long-term water supply for households, agriculture and industry in Perak and Penang. Also present, he said, were Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail, Chief Secretary to the Government Tan Sri Shamsul Azri Abu Bakar and the Secretary-General of the Ministry of Energy Transition and Water Transformation (PETRA), Dato’ Sri Mad Zaidi Mohd Karli.
Photographs accompanying the post show officials standing on stage beneath a backdrop reading “Signing Ceremony: Financing Supplemental Agreement for the Northern Perak Water Supply Scheme (NPWSS) Project”, flanked by the flags of Malaysia and China, and Fadillah in conversation with guests after the ceremony.
Turning an old liability into a water project
According to a Ministry of Finance statement reported by Bernama, SSER, a Minister of Finance Incorporated company, signed the RM5 billion loan repurposing agreement with CEXIM on the same day. The agreement was signed by SSER board member Mohd Fariszan Ahmad and CEXIM vice-president Kang Wang. The ministry described it as a significant achievement for the MADANI Government in concluding negotiations and achieving a partial recovery of the loan.
The money is tied to the Trans-Sabah Gas Pipeline (TSGP) and Multi-Product Pipeline (MPP) projects, which were terminated in 2018. The ministry said Malaysia remained liable for about RM8 billion in related loans from CEXIM even after the two projects were cancelled, and that the matter had remained unresolved despite efforts by the previous three administrations, Free Malaysia Today and the New Straits Times reported.
The ministry said the move reduces the losses arising from the two pipeline projects and ensures that RM5 billion can be used to develop essential infrastructure that benefits the public, particularly in Perak and Penang.
700 million litres a day for northern Perak
The NPWSS is an integrated water supply project that involves transferring raw water from Sungai Perak to the Bukit Merah Dam, upgrading works along Sungai Kurau and Terusan Besar, and building water treatment plants in Kamunting and Bogak. According to the ministry, the scheme targets a supply capacity of 700 million litres a day for northern Perak, including the Kerian industrial area, 300 million litres a day for Penang, and 500 million litres a day of raw water for agricultural irrigation. Construction will be carried out by local contractors.
“Water security is among the government’s priorities to ensure the well-being of the people and strengthen economic development, especially in the northern Perak region,” the ministry said, as quoted by the New Straits Times. It added that the project is expected to meet the increasing demand for domestic, agricultural and industrial use and support socioeconomic development.
According to RTM and the New Straits Times, the ceremony was also attended by CEXIM chairman Chen Huaiyu, the Chargé d’Affaires of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in Malaysia, Lin Shiguang, and representatives of China National Petroleum Corporation. The ministry did not say when construction on the scheme would begin or when it is expected to be completed.
Source : Datuk Amar Fadillah Yusof’s X (https://x.com/PetraJayaMP/status/2116133318077165587), with details from the Ministry of Finance statement as reported by Bernama, RTM, Free Malaysia Today and the New Straits Times.
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