Khairy: RM1b facelift for sports complex

KUALA LUMPUR: The Bukit Jalil sports complex will be given a RM1 billion facelift in preparation for the 2017 SEA Games, Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said today.
Khairy said the cost for the project, which involves two phases, has yet to be finalised.
Eight companies have already been shortlisted for the contract after the ministry conducted open tenders.
"The Private-Public Cooperation Unit (Ukas) is currently preparing a Cabinet paper for the minister's approval. The contract has not been awarded yet as the process is still in its final stages," Khairy told a press conference during the ministry's Hari Raya open house.
The project's first phase, Khairy said, will take place before the 2017 SEA Games and involves renovating and upgrading existing facilities while the second phase will consist of building new facilities.
He said the National Stadium, the Putra Stadium, the Aquatic Stadium, the Hockey Stadium, and athletes dormitories will all be upgraded while a new indoor convention centre/stadium will be built on the parking lot in front of the main stadium along with other new facilities as part of the second phase.
Khairy, who is Rembau MP, said many of the renovation works are improvements to meet the Fire and Rescue Department's current safety standards as the stadiums were built in 1998 in accordance with the guidelines then.
When asked on the need for another indoor stadium, he explained that the government needs to build facilities that can generate revenue as outdoor stadiums don't get nearly as many bookings.
"The indoor Putra Stadium is the one generating the most revenue here (Bukit Jalil Sports Complex). It is fully booked almost every week while the main outdoor stadium only gets five to six bookings a year," Khairy said.
With another convention centre/indoor stadium, he said, the Malaysia Stadium Corporation will be able to generate more revenue which will be used for maintaining the Bukit Jalil Sports Complex's various facilities.