THE SUPER consortium’s proposal to rehabilitate the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) is now with the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), the Department of Transportation (DoTr) said.
Transportation Undersecretary for Planning Ruben S. Reinoso, Jr. told BusinessWorld in a text message Thursday the proposal of the super consortium was finally turned over to NEDA on Wednesday, moving it one step closer to awarding.
Transportation Secretary Arthur P. Tugade said two weeks ago he wants the project to move towards awarding in 90 days.
The group is offering to rehabilitate and expand NAIA over a 15-year period at a project cost of P102 billion. This is expected to increase the capacity of the Manila gateway from the current 30.5 million annual passengers to 47 million in two years and to 65 million in four years.
Before it was turned over to NEDA, the DoTr gave the consortium an April 30 deadline to adjust its concession terms. The concession terms had been under negotiation since September, when the group was given original proponent status for its proposal.
Now that the concession terms are with NEDA, it will be evaluated by the NEDA Investment Coordination Committee. It must then seek the approval of the NEDA Board, which is chaired by President Rodrigo R. Duterte.
If it passes NEDA, the proposal will undergo a Swiss challenge, under which other companies may submit counter-proposals that the consortium has the option to match. The awarding of the project will go to the winner of the Swiss challenge.
The super consortium is comprised of seven of the country’s top conglomerates: Aboitiz InfraCapital, Inc.; AC Infrastructure Holdings Corp.; Alliance Global Group, Inc.; Asia’s Emerging Dragon Corp.; Filinvest Development Corp.; JG Summit Holdings, Inc.; and Metro Pacific Investments Corp.
The group initially said it wants to conduct the Swiss challenge for the project by mid-2019, and to start operating NAIA by year’s end. — Denise A. Valdez
