Chinese company pays courtesy visit to S’wak Transport Ministry, aims to monitor ART assembly factory

Lee (centre) and others during the meeting with CRRC Zhixing (Zhuzhou)'s delegation.

KUCHING, May 29: Monitoring the preparation of the Autonomous Rapid Transit (ART) assembly factory for the arrival of the ART Prototype scheduled for July this year is one of the aims of CRRC Zhixing (Zhuzhou)’s delegation courtesy visit to the Minister of Transport Sarawak (MOTS) Datuk Sri Lee Kim Shin today at the latter’s office at Bangunan Baitulmakmur, Petra Jaya here.

According to a press release issued by MOTS, the delegation was led by CRRC Zhizing managing director Peng Zhonghong, CRRC Zhixing chief engineer Xiao Lei, CRRC MRT overseas general manager Zhao Junkui, and their team members. The delegation was accompanied by representatives from EPR Mobilus Global Rail JV Sdn Bhd.

CRRC Zhixing (Zhuzhou) is the manufacturer and supplier of the rolling stock of the ART vehicles to System Package Contractor 1, which was awarded to EPR Mobilus Global Rail JV Sdn Bhd.

The delegation’s visit to Kuching has two main objectives. Firstly, it aims to visit the Kuching Urban Transportation System (KUTS) route alignment for the ART, encompassing the Blue Line, Red Line, and Green Line. Secondly, the delegation aims to monitor the preparation of the ART assembly factory for the arrival of the ART Prototype scheduled for July this year.

As per the press release, during Lee and MOTS deputy minister Datuk Dr Jerip Susil’s visit to China in March 2023 for the ART proof-of-concept (POC), the CRRC team made arrangements and efforts to receive the delegation from Sarawak led by MOTS.

During the courtesy visit, Lee was accompanied by Dr Jerip and officers from MOTS.

“I believe the fruitful visit of the CRRC team to Kuching will undoubtedly contribute to the development of our ART system in Kuching and the public transport system in Sarawak.

“As the first city outside China to adopt the hydrogen-powered ART system, their invaluable expertise and experience will help us revolutionise Sarawak’s transportation landscape.

“Through their guidance, we can optimise our resources, enhance the efficiency of operations, and provide safe, reliable, green and environmentally friendly transportation for our people,” Lee said. — DayakDaily