SAN MIGUEL Corp. (SMC) has tapped three foreign companies for the design and construction of its proposed P734-billion international airport in Bulakan, Bulacan.

The company said in a statement Tuesday it is working with Groupe ADP (Aeroports de Paris), Meinhardt Group and Jacobs Engineering Group for the Bulacan airport project.

These firms are known to have worked on Changi Airport in Singapore, Charles de Gaulle Airport in France and Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in Georgia, United States.

“This is our biggest investment in a single project to date, one that will definitely impact the lives of millions of Filipinos and the country in general — all the more reason for us to push for greater sustainability and choose the best people to work with us,” SMC President and Chief Operating Officer Ramon S. Ang said in the statement. SMC said it is also looking for a “world-class airport operator” to handle the operations and management of the proposed gateway.

San Miguel Holdings Corp.’s (SMHC) proposed New Manila International Airport, located in Bulacan, is eyed to become an alternative to the Ninoy Aquino International Airport. The SMC unit is proposing to build a 2,500-hectare airport with four to six parallel runways that will have an annual capacity of 100 million passengers.

SMHC is expected to receive from the government the Notice of Award for the project within the week, after which it must comply with documentary requirements within 20 days.

The transportation department earlier said it targets the formal award of the project to SMHC by early September, and for the construction of the airport to begin by the fourth quarter of the year.

On concerns about the livelihood of the fisherfolk to be affected by the airport’s location, Mr. Ang said SMC will make sure the community will be relocated to better homes.

“We are in the process of identifying areas where together we can build a fishing community that will last for generations to come,” he was quoted as saying.

“With a major international airport at their doorstep, fisherfolk, microentrepreneurs, and local businesses will have a huge, ready market for their products, and even a means to ship them to other provinces or export them,” Mr. Ang added. — Denise A. Valdez

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