IPOH (Dec 14): The Perak government confirmed that the Cabinet had approved the construction of the 60km West Ipoh Span Expressway (Wise) linking Gopeng with Kuala Kangsar.

Perak Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Saarani Mohamad said the cost of implementing the project will be fully borne under the Private Financing Initiative.

“Wise is an approach to resolve the traffic woes on the North-South Expressway (PLUS), especially when an accident occurs at the Menora Tunnel, and highway users have no other alternatives apart from using the federal road in Sungai Siput.

“With Wise, motorists could use the alternative route from Gopeng to Kuala Kangsar to avoid traffic congestion whenever there is an accident at the Menora Tunnel,” he said when met by reporters after opening the Perak Economic Outlook 2024 programme at Bangunan Perak Darul Ridzuan here on Thursday.

Saarani said the state government will give its full cooperation to implement the project, including the aspect of land acquisition from the state Lands and Mines Office. 

In this regard, he said the state government is optimistic that the opening of Wise will bring positive impact, apart from complementing the West Coast Expressway (WCE). 

“Wise will stimulate the state as a a major portion of the WCE has been opened to the public. As such, they will complement each other,” he said.

On Sept 16, Malaysian Highway Authority chairman Datuk Seri Jalaluddin Alias said the construction of Wise was in the final stage of negotiations, and this would be finalised by December.

In another development, Saarani said the state government is proposing to develop a non-radioactive rare earth element (NR-REE) laboratory in Simpang Pulai here, subject to the approval of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Sustainability.

He said the location is seen as suitable, because it is fully owned by Menteri Besar Incorporated (MB Inc), which is also one of the mandatory agencies for the development of NR-REE projects in Perak.

"Currently, we have submitted the application and paperwork related to the development of this laboratory to the ministry, and hopefully this (approval) process will be successful, and we can start.

"This laboratory is shared between MB Inc, the Perak State Agricultural Development Corporation, and the Perak State Development Corporation (PKNP)," he said at a programme attended by more than 700 participants, which aims at focusing on efforts to increase the state's economic growth as conceived in the Perak Sejahtera 2030 plan.