MPIC reaches agreement on ‘connector road’ project

Metro Pacific Tollways Corp., the toll-road arm of Metro Pacific Investments Corp., has concluded successful negotiations with state-run Philippine National Construction Corp. on a massive elevated toll road linking the southern and northern parts of Metro Manila, a top executive said.

Metro Pacific Tollways president Ramoncito Fernandez said in an interview Thursday that an agreement “in principle” with PNCC has been reached regarding its joint venture investment proposal.

The next step would be for the Toll Regulatory Board (TRB) to approve the investment proposal, which Metro Pacific Tollways hopes would come before the end of the year.

Obtaining the approval would allow Metro Pacific Tollways to proceed with construction of the 13-kilometer “connector road” that would link the company’s North Luzon Expressway to the South Luzon Expressway, operated by rival San Miguel Corp. and the Citra Group of Indonesia, while easing congested roads in Metro Manila.

“We hope they [TRB] act on it so we can start construction by the first quarter of next year,” Fernandez said.

He said assuming approvals are received on time, they are expecting to complete the connector-road before President Aquino steps down in 2016.

PNCC officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment. TRB spokesperson Julius Corpuz said separately that the proposal has yet to be taken up by TRB board, which is tentatively looking to hold its next meeting in the second or third week of this month.

The completion of negotiations with PNCC was viewed as a key step as the latter holds the franchise for both NLEx and SLEx. Fernandez earlier said their proposal would use an existing joint venture with PNCC.

Metro Pacific Tollways is considered the country’s biggest toll-road operator with about 64 percent of the country’s toll roads under its management, information on its website showed.

The company operates the 84.96-km North Luzon Expressway and is still in talks with the government, which has yet to complete the turnover of the 93.7-km Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway to the toll road operator.

In the south, it operates the 14-km Manila-Cavite Expressway.

Most of its flagship projects are still located in the north, but its connector road would bridge the gap between its main assets and its expansion plans in the south.