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Singapore High Speed Rail Project 2017
Singapore High Speed Rail Project 2017
Contacts
If you would like further information on any aspect of this client note, please contact:
Alex Wong
Partner, Singapore
T +65 6302 2557
alex.wong@hoganlovells.com
Benita Lee
Associate, Singapore
T +65 6302 7132
benita.lee@hoganlovells.com
This note is written as a general guide only, in respect of the Kuala Lumpur – Singapore High
Speed Rail Project as of January 2017. It is not intended to provide legal advice and should not be
relied upon as a substitute for specific legal advice.
2 Hogan Lovells Lee & Lee
Introduction
details on the rationale for the construction of (c) Operation – It appears that the
the HSR. construction and operation of the HSR will
be undertaken by multiple parties.
Project structure Separating construction from operation
Key details of how the HSR will be structured could allow for specialisation and greater
have yet to be announced. However, some transparency. However, it might also create
considerations are likely to come into play: interfacing difficulties and inefficiencies as
(a) Financing – The HSR’s estimated cost is multiple parties will be involved and each
US$14 billion. Given that the development party is entitled to a different income
costs are high and the return on investment source which might not always be
will be on a long term basis, some level of commensurate with its investment costs.
government funding may be necessary Responsibility will be more diffused than
(even if financing is mostly privately under a single-contractor model, and each
sourced, which appears to be the case). contractor may be less incentivised to adopt
Should there be any public funding a broad-based view of the project. It should
involved, the issue then centers on the also be noted that the Malaysian domestic
distribution of costs between the Singapore HSR service will be operated separately
and Malaysia governments, with ownership from the express non-stop HSR service
of the rail tracks and rolling stock being a between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore,
related consideration. Although the HSR is which will allow Malaysia to have complete
a bilateral project, most of the HSR will be autonomy over the domestic service and the
situated in Malaysia (15km of the HSR in ability to tailor it to meet local needs.
Singapore versus 335km of the HSR in (d) Regulation – Presently, it appears that the
Malaysia). It will be important for both HSR fares will be set by the private
governments to reach an equitable solution operators. The HSR fares are required to be
on this point. benchmarked against air fares, but are not
(b) Construction – According to the HSR anticipated to be significantly regulated by
Agreement, MyHSR Corporation of either government. Customs, Immigration
Malaysia and the Land Transport Authority and Quarantine ("CIQ") facilities will be
of Singapore will each be responsible for located at Bandar Malaysia, Iskandar Puteri
the development, construction and and Singapore, and it is anticipated that
maintenance of the HSR-related passengers will only need to clear CIQ once
infrastructure in their respective countries, as both countries will locate their CIQ
and the lines in Singapore and Malaysia will facilities at the above areas. This may
be connected by a 25m above sea level indicate that the ability to provide robust
bridge over the Straits of Johor. This security measures will be a key
suggests that each country may be consideration in the operations package
appointing its own separate contractor to tender.
construct the line within its territorial Please refer to Schedule 2 for more details on
boundaries. This approach may be structuring the HSR.
considered more efficient from a project
management basis, since each country will
manage the construction within its soil, but
interfacing will become a more pronounced
issue.
4 Hogan Lovells Lee & Lee
Some of our select experience in the high speed lots of the ICE (high speed railway) track
rail sector include: from Cologne – Frankfurt
Sojitz Corporation on the A bidding consortium in connection
construction contracts and with the procurement of the Perpignan
arrangements relating to the Western Figueres HSL concession (€1.1bn)
Dedicated Freight Corridor freight
railway linking Delhi and Mumbai The shareholders on the restructuring
of the €1.32bn high speed rail link from
On three different schemes for the
Amsterdam to the Belgian border
Channel Tunnel High Speed Rail
Link: On the acquisition of the Arlanda High
Speed Rail project in Sweden
Scheme 1: the British Railways
Board on its original proposed The Hong Kong MTRC in relation to
joint venture with two leading numerous projects, including developing
private sector developers/ the contractual structure and contract
contractors to jointly build, own documents for the construction of the
and operate a high capacity link rail link to Hong Kong Airport
between London and the PT Sarana Multi Infrastruktur
Channel Tunnel (Persero) on its feasibility
Scheme 2: a major international arrangements for the Soekarno Hatta
developer and engineering group International Airport to Manggarai Rail
as shareholder in and contractor Link PPP project in Jakarta
to the development company Asian Development Bank on the
awarded the franchise for the rail development of a rail-based mass rapid
link transit system in Bangalore, India
Scheme 3: the restructuring of Energy Resources Rail LLC as
the arrangements for Scheme 2 project sponsors on all aspects of the
RFF and the French Government on Ukhaa Khudag-Gashuun Sukhait railway
the tendering of the Tours-Bordeaux project in Mongolia including the
high speed rail concession project (LGV railway construction packages
SEA) (€7.8bn)) The Hong Kong MTRC on the
The UK Department for Transport development of their forms of contract
(the "DfT") on the £7bn Intercity for the Hong Kong Quarry Bay Relief
Express Programme for the Line and Tseung Kwan O Relief
procurement of high speed railway stock Extension projects and project issues
and an associated infrastructure upgrade during implementation
Schedule 1
Rationale for the HSR
To understand the rationale for the construction the transformational effects will filter down into
of the HSR, the HSR must firstly be viewed each of these regions and their peripheries.
against a larger political, economic and social
Social perspective
background, secondly against current demand,
and thirdly against the other existing The HSR is an important infrastructure project
transportation options. that would improve connectivity and
accessibility for people living near the stations.
The HSR and its political, economic and
For Singapore, the HSR also forms part of a
social context larger urban development plan to develop
Political perspective regional centres outside of the central business
Singapore and Malaysia have historically been district. For many years, land-scarce Singapore
closely related, and the HSR is seen as a symbol has faced transportation and congestion issues
of strengthened diplomatic ties. The Leaders' in the central areas and the government is
Retreat is an annual platform between the two trying to resolve this issue by dispersing human
countries' Prime Ministers that has traditionally traffic. As such, the Singapore HSR terminus
yielded major bilateral agreements, and the will be located in Jurong East – once a
HSR was first announced at the 2013 Leaders' traditionally industrial area with residential
Retreat with the HSR Agreement being signed pockets, that is being developed into and
at the 2016 Leaders' Retreat. revitalised as a mixed-use self-contained urban
district (the Jurong Lake District).
From a broader ASEAN perspective, the ASEAN
member states have repeatedly affirm their The HSR and current demand
desire to move towards greater regional The demand for Kuala Lumpur-Singapore trips
integration and connectivity. For example, appears to be high. The Kuala Lumpur-
there are plans to establish an ASEAN Singapore route has seen strong growth in
Economic Community that would allow for free passenger-km of travel, with the total travel
movement of goods, services and labour. The market growing from 5.47 million passenger-km
HSR could prove to be a showpiece of this wider in 2005 to 7.45 million passenger-km in 2011.
ASEAN goal.
Base transport demand in HSR corridor
Economic perspective (only relevant routes)
The HSR would make day trips between Kuala
Lumpur and Singapore even more convenient,
be it for business or leisure, and thus act as a
catalyst for economic growth.
For the Malaysian government in particular, the
HSR is a key piece of the Economic
Transformation Programme that targets to raise
the GNI per capita to at least US$15,000 by
2020. The Malaysian railway stations will be
strategically located at areas which have been
targeted by the government for economic Source: Malaysian Land Public Transport Commission, “Projects
development. For example, Seremban is – High Speed Rail”, retrieved 22 July 2015 −
currently already a major satellite city for Kuala http://www.spad.gov.my/projects/high-speed-rail
Lumpur and is positioned to be a technology
hub. The Malaysia government anticipates that
Kuala Lumpur - Singapore January 2017 7
Present demand also exceeds the capacity of the Estimated travel time and cost for a
existing infrastructure. For instance, demand single-way trip between Kuala Lumpur
for the use of the causeway, one of the two and Singapore
bridges connecting Johor Bahru and Singapore,
exceeds capacity by 33%. The market for Kuala Estimated Estimated
time time
Lumpur-Singapore trips is expected to continue (excluding (including
growing at a comparable rate to the GDP growth Mode of customs customs Estimated
of Malaysia and Singapore, at an average of 3 to transport clearance) clearance) cost (US$)
5%. In the long run, as the market matures, the
KTM
growth rate might slow down. Nevertheless, railway 400 mins 430 mins 9 – 34
average growth is still expected to hover around
3.2% from 2011 to 2060, with a market of 251 Bus 240 mins 270 mins 18 – 36
million passenger trips by 2060. Budget
Hence, it appears that the HSR would add airlines:
57 – 64
another option to meet increasing demand.
Full-service
The HSR and its competitive edge Plane 60 mins 170 mins airlines: 178
Ticket sales are partially dependent on the HSR 90 mins 120 mins 57 – 64
HSRʼs advantages vis-à-vis its competitors,
especially in terms of price and time. The
HSRʼs closest competitors appear to be budget
airlines and buses.
Presently, single-trip tickets for the HSR are
anticipated to cost around US$57-US$64. This
is roughly the same price range for a single-trip
flight on a budget airline, but is possibly a more
comfortable ride and a faster one (when the
boarding and security checks are factored in).
Budget airlines would nevertheless retain an
advantage in respect of transit passengers as the
HSR termini are located far from their
respective airports.
Buses have a price advantage over the HSR, and
have the flexibility to pick up and drop off
customers at a greater variety of locations.
However, they are significantly slower than the
HSR.
8 Hogan Lovells Lee & Lee
Schedule 2
Structuring the HSR
It appears that the HSR will be open to private Although the service will travel through areas
sector participation with possible local content where other stations will eventually be
requirements. Private sector participation will constructed, such stations could be built at a
bring with it ownership considerations of the later stage.
track, stations and rolling stock.
Different financing models for different
Capital servicing sections
The income stream from a railway project can Increasingly, governments look to applying
be used to repay the upfront capital. Typical different financing models to different sections
income streams of a railway project include of the project. Decisions are made based on
revenue from retail, advertising, property socio-economic factors for each section of the
development, tolls and fees. It is necessary to network, as well as estimated returns.
identify how much of the capital cost can
Mix-and-match of financing models should be
realistically be financed through usage-
done carefully, however, and not without
generated revenue, and how much must be thorough financial appraisal and feasibility
financed through other sources of income.
study of the project.
The most significant income stream is likely to Time costs
be from the ticket fares collected by the rail
operator. This will depend on the ridership of Structuring and negotiating PPP arrangements
the railway. As such, high-speed railways can take far longer than government financing.
should only be built if justified by strong If there is great urgency for the new
demand. infrastructure, the government might need to
fall back on simpler financing models. In the
Given the strong existing demand for the Kuala
case of the HSR, we do not see pressing time
Lumpur – Singapore route and the competitive
constraints given the availability of other
edge of the HSR over other transportation transport options. The various political
options, this should not principally be an issue
commitments made by both governments in
for the HSR although feasibility studies should
respect of a 2026 deadline should be noted,
still be undertaken to obtain more detailed although such deadline is reportedly considered
forecasts.
as being "tight".
Project structure considerations Project risks
Financing for the HSR cannot be considered in The HSR is a complex and challenging project,
isolation. Instead, the project and its financing given the number of risks involved including:
should be structured in tandem to maximise
cost-efficiency and to ensure reliable returns. (a) Delay – apart from the usual delay risks,
the HSR is a bilateral project and
Build profitable route first coordination time may result in further
In the case of the HSR, the non-stop express delays. For example, there is likely to be a
service between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore is large number of third party consents
probably the most profitable route as it connects required from both governments.
two large metropolises. Ensuring that the most (b) Demand/revenue – given the high
profitable route is the first one up and running development costs, the HSR would
might make financing for subsequent parts probably need a decade or so to turn
easier. Prioritisation of the non-stop express profitable. Within this period,
service between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore demand/revenue may fall below
would mean establishing the termini first. projections. For example, competing
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