Khalid told The Star in an exclusive interview published today that if the information had been revealed before the agreement was signed, it would have had an impact on the price of stocks related to water assets.
"I was concerned with the possible abuse of information and insider dealing. These are the reasons PKR leaders were not informed ahead of the signing," Khalid told The Star.
On Wednesday, Putrajaya agreed to Selangor's acquisition of four water concessionaires for RM9.65 billion.
The concessionaires are Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor (Syabas), Puncak Niaga Sdn Bhd (PNSB), Konsortium Abbas Sdn Bhd (Abbas) and Syarikat Pengeluar Air Selangor Holdings Bhd (Splash).
Selangor and Putrajaya also agreed to facilitate the building of the Langat 2 water treatment plant project.
A five-year impasse on the Langat 2 project ended with the signing of a memorandum of understanding between Green Technology and Water Minister Datuk Seri Dr Maximus Ongkili and Khalid.
"If there had been any misuse of information, the whole transaction would have been regarded as void," Khalid was quoted as saying.
"The agreement is part of the 2013 election manifesto, which includes steady tariff hikes and not compromising the interests of the people of Selangor," he added.
Rather damagingly, Khalid revealed that there had been party leaders from PKR who had attempted to influence the valuation of water assets in Selangor.
"Some party leaders had introduced me to certain people who had been trying to justify why the pricing of water assets should have been higher," Khalid was quoted by The Star as saying.
"I have been an investment banker for so long that I look at the principle of valuation before determining the price of the asset," he said.
Khalid said he stood by his principle and set the price at RM9.65 billion, in spite of others attempting to set the price.
He also dismissed claims by Kajang by-election contender Datuk Zaid Ibrahim that PKR de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim had been outmanoeuvred by the signing of the water deal.
"Based on my understanding, Anwar is not against the water consolidation exercise or the MoU signing," Khalid told the daily.
The MoU gives Selangor the power to take over the operations of PNSB, Syabas, Splash and Abbas.
The operations of treatment plants and the distribution of water under the four companies would then be consolidated and managed by Kumpulan Darul Ehsan Berhad (KDEB).
According to media reports, the Langat 2 plant is part of a water transfer project between Selangor and Pahang. The RM8 billion project will see raw water being piped from Pahang to Selangor where it will be processed by Langat 2.
The Star had previously reported that the treatment plant can process 1,130 million litres per day and is anticipated to meet the needs of Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya until 2025.
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