Penang LRT: first package 15.5% done, RM397m to local firms

The first construction package of Penang's Mutiara Line LRT, the 23.7km stretch from KOMTAR to Silicon Island, was 15.5% complete at the end of September 2026. Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow gave the figure when he tabled the state's Budget 2027 on 30 October. He said 150 local small firms, contractors and suppliers hold subcontracts worth RM397.07 million. A week later MRT Corp awarded the RM2.69 billion contract for the sea crossing to Butterworth and put the whole line at 16% complete.

Progress

• First package (CMC1): KOMTAR to Station A1 on Silicon Island, 15.5% at end-September 2026
• Whole line: 16% complete and on schedule, MRT Corp said on 5 November, up from 8.99% in June
• On site: 16 work sites are operating along the island alignment. Bored piling is on schedule despite utility relocation and narrow working space on busy roads, the main contractor SRS Consortium said
• Opening: passenger services are targeted for December 2031

The sea crossing (CMC2)

• Award: RM2.69 billion to a joint venture of China Communications Construction Company, TRC Construction (TRC Synergy, 30%) and Ufuk Semarak, announced on 5 November
• Route: about 5.5km from Macallum on the island to Penang Sentral in Butterworth, including a 3.05km bridge with navigation spans for ships using the Prai and Butterworth ports, and an elevated station
• Timing: a five-year contract. Main construction starts in the third quarter of 2027 after preliminary works, state transport committee chairman Zairil Khir Johari said on 4 November
• Journey: about eight minutes from KOMTAR to Penang Sentral, where passengers can change to KTM trains, ferries and buses
• Systems: in August MRT Corp awarded a RM3.03 billion systems contract to a joint venture of MRCB and Theta Edge

The line

• Length and stations: 29.67km, with 20 stations and two provisional stations, under the revised railway scheme published in February 2026
• Depots: the main depot is on Silicon Island and a second one at Sungai Nibong
• Cost: RM16.8 billion, the Transport Ministry said in June. MRT Corp gave RM13 billion when work began in January 2025
• Later extensions: Tanjung Bungah on the island and Bukit Mertajam and Batu Kawan on the mainland have been mentioned as possible extensions after the first line

Sungai Nibong TOD

• Master plan: the state is preparing a transit-oriented development plan for Sungai Nibong with technical help from the Asian Development Bank. The draft is now due by end-2026, after a target of around October
• Site: about 58 acres of mostly state land around the future station and depot. About 9.9 acres of the 20.1-acre Tapak Ekspo site have been handed to MRT Corp
• Draft plan: up to 700 affordable homes and about 350 high-end homes for around 3,600 residents. It also has shops, offices, hotels, a hospital, a sports complex, a five-acre arts precinct, a park with retention ponds and a bus and taxi hub
• Pesta: the state will keep the Pesta Pulau Pinang fair. This year it moves to Kubang Menerong in Tasek Gelugor from 1 to 31 December

Other transport works in the 2027 budget

• Juru–Sungai Dua Elevated Highway: Package 1 was 50.69% complete on 18 October and is due by end-October 2027. Tenders for Packages 2 to 5 should close by end-2026, with work from early 2027
• Jalan Perusahaan to Jalan Tok Kangar: RM11 million for land compensation for the third phase of road widening, with work from early 2027 for two years
• Local roads: RM1.5 million for Valdor and RM5 million for Penanti