10 infra projects worth P307B up for Duterte OK

The rollout of 10 infrastructure projects worth at least P307 billion will be up for President Duterte’s approval early next month in line with plans to ramp up spending on vital projects.

Separately, economic managers on Tuesday identified tax reform and power cost as among the most pressing issues to be addressed by the Duterte administration, Economic Planning Secretary Ernesto M. Pernia said in a text message.

Pernia, also the director-general of the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda), added that the Cabinet’s economic development cluster was moving to craft the Philippine Development Plan for the period 2017 to 2022.

In a separate meeting of the Neda Investment Coordination Committee-Cabinet Committee (ICC-CabCom) also on Tuesday, six projects were endorsed for approval of the Neda Board, chaired by the President.

Neda Deputy Director General Rolando G. Tungpalan said the projects were the P68.26-billion 48.6-kilometer leg of the Metro Manila Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) connecting Edsa, Ayala Avenue, Ortigas Business District, Bonifacio Global City and Ninoy Aquino International Airport; the P9.33-billion Plaridel Bypass Toll Road; the P8.02-billion second phase of the maritime safety capability improvement project for the Philippine Coast Guard; the P2.4-billion modernization of the Eastern Visayas Regional Medical Center in Tacloban City and the P2.22-billion expansion and transfer of Governor Celestrino Gallares Memorial Hospital to Cortez, Bohol from Tagbilaran City.

As for the 653-kilometer south line of the North-South Railway Project to be bid out under the public-private partnership (PPP) framework, the Department of Transportation was required to submit the adjusted project cost as the Neda ICC had approved the project redesign to standard gauge instead of the narrow gauge technology, Neda Director Jonathan L. Uy said in an e-mail.

Because of the switch in technology, the project cost of the biggest PPP project to date will go up from P170.7 billion previously, Tungpalan said.

In April, the Neda ICC approved the transportation department’s proposal to split the project into two, such that the planned commuter railway (from Tutuban to Los Baños, Laguna) and the long-haul railway (from Los Baños to Sorsogon, with a branch from Calamba City to Batangas City), would be auctioned off separately.

The original plan approved by the Neda Board last year consisted of commuter railway operations between Tutuban, Manila, and Calamba, Laguna, and a long-haul railway operations between Tutuban and Legazpi, on top of the extended long-haul rail operations on the branch line between Calamba and Batangas and an extension between Legazpi and Matnog, Sorsogon.

The project’s 36.7-km north line, which will run from Tutuban to Malolos in Bulacan, would be constructed using a $2-billion official development assistance (ODA) from Japan.