METRO PACIFIC Tollways South Corp. (MPTSC) is targeting to double its revenues by 2020, as it opens new road segments in the next few years.

“Our revenue now is… P1.468 billion in 2017. We hope to be able to double that in four years, by 2020. We hope to be able to do P3.4 billion,” MPTSC President Luigi L. Bautista said in a recent interview.

Mr. Bautista said the company anticipates increased revenues with the completion of the Cavite-Laguna Expressway (CALAX), and the C-5 South Link, which is part of the Cavite Expressway (CAVITEx) franchise.

“That’s in time for the completion of CALAX, C-5 South Link…Our driver is new and existing projects [and] new road segments that will be opened,” Mr. Bautista added.

Mr. Bautista said Phase 1 of the C-5 South Link project is expected to be completed by the end of 2018. The estimated cost of Phase 1 is P1.5 billion. The whole project has a total length 7.7 kilometers and will cost around P14.8 billion.

“We’re now building the flyover across [South Luzon Expressway] SLEx that would lead us to the on-off route near Merville… We hope to be able to complete that in 1.5 years… Towards the end of next year, we hope we’ll be operational already,” Mr. Bautista said.

He noted right-of-way acquisition for Phase 2, which will connect Merville to Sucat, is now underway. Phase 3 of  the project will connect Sucat to R1 Expressway or Coastal Road.

The two other projects under the CAVITEx franchise are the Segment 4 extension, a 1.2-kilometer link between CAVITEx and CALAX, and Segment 5, which will cover the Kawit-Noveleta-Rosario route.

However, Mr. Bautista said the company will only build the Segment 4 extension together with CALAX, while Segment 5, which is “about 9.5 kilometers,” is currently undergoing feasibility study.

“[We have an] ongoing detailed feasibility study… It also covers studying the feasibility to do a spur road to Sangley. We hope [for the study to] be completed by the end of the year. That’s the only time we will know if the project is viable or not to construct at this time… We’re only going to build Sangley spur [road] if Sangley [airport] is going to be developed,” Mr. Bautista said.

The government earlier said it is spending around P600 million to P700 million to develop the airport at Sangley Point in Cavite. The Tieng-Sy consortium had also proposed a $50-billion project to develop an airport and economic zone at Sangley Point involving the transfer of both general aviation and low-cost carriers to the base.

For the CALAX, Mr. Bautista said that the contractor for the Cavite segment will be Leighton Contractors Asia Ltd.

The Metro Pacific group in June broke ground for the Laguna segment of the P35.43-billion project.

Mr. Bautista said for the right-of-way negotiations, the Department of Public Works and Highways has said that it will deliver 10 to 11 kilometers by October, and the rest of the 27-kilometer alignment by January next year.

“The government said [that] 11 km. of Laguna side will be available by January next year… So by January next year, [we will go ] full blast on the entire alignment,” Mr. Bautista said.

MPTSC is a subsidiary of MPIC, which is one of three Philippine units of Hong Kong-based First Pacific Co. Ltd., the others being Philex Mining Corp. and PLDT, Inc.

Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has a majority stake in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls. — Patrizia Paola C. Marcelo

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