Malaysia wants to pay new 700-kilometer railway in palm oil
The government of Malaysia, the world’s second largest palm oil producer behind Indonesia, is negotiating with an Indian state-owned railway company to get a new rail line built at the west side of Peninsular Malaysia with 70 per cent of the costs paid in palm oil, according to a report by Indian business website MoneyControl.
The report said that Malaysia was in talks with Indian Railway Construction Limited, or Ircon, a transport infrastructure company. The entire 700-kilometer railway line would cost around $1 billion.
“We are looking at this project in Malaysia and checking whether they can pay 70 per cent of the project cost in the form of palm oil,” SK Chaudhary, Ircon’s chairman, said, according to the report.
He added that the talks, which were at a preliminary stage, involved the design and construction of a line running along the west coast of the country, with one terminus near Kuala Lumpur.
Palm oil as a currency
The unusual deal has, however, a predecessor as in 2001, Ircon once agreed on a similar deal and built a short 31-kilometer link in Malaysia’s southern Jojor Bahru state in return for palm oil.
But using palm oil as a currency in this deal seems to make sense. India is the world’s largest importer of palm oil in the world , buying some nine million tonnes worth around $5.4 billion annually.
Another notable palm oil deal was struck by China in 2019. The country agreed to accept palm oil worth nearly $150 million from Malaysia in exchange for construction services and civilian and defense equipment.
Palm oil for railway: Barter trade revived The government of Malaysia, the world’s second largest palm oil producer behind Indonesia, is negotiating with an Indian state-owned railway company to get a new rail line built at the west side of Peninsular Malaysia with 70 per cent of the costs paid in palm oil, according to a report by Indian business website MoneyControl. The report said that Malaysia was in talks with Indian Railway Construction Limited, or Ircon, a transport infrastructure company. The entire 700-kilometer railway line would cost around $1 billion. “We are looking at this project in Malaysia and...
The government of Malaysia, the world’s second largest palm oil producer behind Indonesia, is negotiating with an Indian state-owned railway company to get a new rail line built at the west side of Peninsular Malaysia with 70 per cent of the costs paid in palm oil, according to a report by Indian business website MoneyControl.
The report said that Malaysia was in talks with Indian Railway Construction Limited, or Ircon, a transport infrastructure company. The entire 700-kilometer railway line would cost around $1 billion.
“We are looking at this project in Malaysia and checking whether they can pay 70 per cent of the project cost in the form of palm oil,” SK Chaudhary, Ircon’s chairman, said, according to the report.
He added that the talks, which were at a preliminary stage, involved the design and construction of a line running along the west coast of the country, with one terminus near Kuala Lumpur.
Palm oil as a currency
The unusual deal has, however, a predecessor as in 2001, Ircon once agreed on a similar deal and built a short 31-kilometer link in Malaysia’s southern Jojor Bahru state in return for palm oil.
But using palm oil as a currency in this deal seems to make sense. India is the world’s largest importer of palm oil in the world , buying some nine million tonnes worth around $5.4 billion annually.
Another notable palm oil deal was struck by China in 2019. The country agreed to accept palm oil worth nearly $150 million from Malaysia in exchange for construction services and civilian and defense equipment.
