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ailway firm PT MRT Jakarta is still keen to build the east-west section of the inner city mass rapid transport (MRT) system worth US$3.9 billion in the capital despite the possibility of its funding coming from a business-to-business scheme.

The section, which will be the second part of the mega-project, will involve the construction of a 27-kilometer track from Kembangan, West Jakarta to Ujung Menteng, East Jakarta. The bidding for the project is expected to occur in 2019.

MRT Jakarta operational and maintenance director Agung Wicaksono said the construction of the east-west section was still within the company’s plans after it finished off the north-south section by 2020.

“We are still awaiting the decision from the Transportation Ministry. We certainly hope to be the one that will build the section,” he said on Wednesday.

To tap into the opportunity, MRT Jakarta would prepare an engineer team as well as the equity to engage in the project, Agung said, but declined to elaborate on the details.

The government earlier conveyed the idea of constructing the east-west section under a B2B scheme, different from the north-south section, which is funded through a government-to-government (G-to-G) scheme.

The former is expected to save funds from the state budget by transferring the costs to the private sector. Such a scheme is being applied in the development of a light rail transit (LRT) system in Greater Jakarta by state-owned railway firm PT Kereta Api Indonesia (KAI).

Since 2013, the Jakarta administration, through MRT Jakarta, has been working on the initial phase of the first section linking the northern and southern parts of the city.

The phase covers a 15.7 km track from the iconic Hotel Indonesia traffic circle in Central Jakarta to Lebak Bulus, South Jakarta with the construction funded by a 125 billion yen (US$1.1 billion) soft loan from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

The track is set to begin operations in early March 2019 carrying around 173,400 passengers daily on 16 rolling stocks. City dwellers will only need to spend 30 minutes traveling from one end of the track to the other with a five-minute headway.

Agung said that so far, progress on the construction of the initial phase of the north-south section had reached 76 percent completion.

MRT Jakarta expects an additional budget approved by the Jakarta House of Representative (DPRD) to cover a Rp 22.5 trillion ($187.2 million) cost overrun because of some changes in construction standards to anticipate earthquakes.

At the same time, the company is also preparing for the next phase of the north-south line spanning 8.1 km from the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle to Kampung Bandan, North Jakarta. The construction will cost Rp 22.5 trillion and is scheduled to commence next year with completion in 2020.

Separately, Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi Budi said that the plan for the east-west section of the MRT system was still being assessed by consultants. He, however, showed an indefinite stance as to whether the government would proceed with the B2B arrangement.

“JICA will be the one that designs it [the construction],” he said.

In addition to building the north-south section, MRT Jakarta had also proposed becoming the master developer of the transit oriented development (TOD) of the MRT project to government, the firm claimed.

Budi, meanwhile, urged the company to invite other private firms to participate in the TOD development.

“With the limited expertise and competency, I ask [the operator of LRT and MRT] to also allow involvement from parties with more competency to manage it [the TOD],” he said.