Sangley airport study out by mid 2015

The transportation department is expecting a full study on a new international airport in Sangley Point, Cavite by the middle of 2015, a senior government official said.

Transportation Secretary Joseph Abaya said the government was set on the Cavite site, which used to house a United States naval base, due to the lack of other suitable options. The study is being handled by the Japan International Cooperation Agency, which was ready to finance the project.

“Jica is finishing the study. It is supposed to give it to us in June,” Abaya said.

He said the Sangley location was deemed the best among seven sites considered, which included locations along Manila Bay. The DOTC’s parameters called for a location about 20 minutes away from Metro Manila.

The planned Sangley airport, estimated by Jica to cost P435.9 billion to build, was deemed crucial in meeting the rising passenger demand, seen to more than triple to 101.4 million in 2040 from 31.9 million in 2012, a Jica-National Economic and Development Authority infrastructure roadmap showed.

The Sangley International Airport would be able to handle about 55 million passengers per year when it opens in 2025 which, together with the existing Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Manila, would be enough to meet the area’s estimated demand of 59.1 million, Jica said.

The Sangley facility can eventually be expanded to handle 130 million passengers yearly by 2050, it said.

As noted, the crucial decisions need to come within 2014, given that the existing Naia is nearing its estimated maximum capacity of 35 million passengers per year. The figure is expected to be breached next year.

“As a rule of thumb, Naia would totally be capacity-saturated in 2015, and not be able to cater for the increasing passenger demand anymore,” it said.

This means a shorter-term fix is also required. Jica said one solution was to extend the existing Sangley runway at an estimated cost of P4 billion, which would allow the facility to act as a supplemental “third runway” to the existing Naia.