More NAIA rehab proposals welcome, says transport chief
MANILA –The Department of Transportation (DOTr) is still open to receiving proposals for the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) rehabilitation project even after a consortium comprising the country’s biggest conglomerates submitted a P100-billion bid recently.
Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista, in an interview in Makati City on Wednesday, told reporters they were still formulating the terms of reference (TOR) for the big-ticket infrastructure project with its partner Asian Development Bank (ADB).
“The initial study is to have solicited [bids]. That is the reason why we engage ADB for us to be able to entertain a solicited proposal,” Bautista explained.
The DOTr signed in February a transaction advisory service agreement with the ADB to facilitate the selection of potential partners for the Naia upgrade project.
The TOR is expected to be completed by June, Bautista said.
Ahead of this, however, the Manila International Airport Consortium submitted an unsolicited proposal to upgrade the international gateway. It seeks to double Naia’s passenger capacity to 62.5 million per annum by 2028 from 31 million currently.
The consortium comprises Aboitiz InfraCapital Inc., AC Infrastructure Holdings Corp., Asia’s Emerging Dragon Corp., Alliance Global-Infracorp Development Inc., Filinvest Development Corp., JG Summit Infrastructure Holdings Corp. and Global Infrastructure Partners.
“Since there is an unsolicited proposal, we have to work on it. We’re given 35 days to do the completion check. That is what we are doing,” said Bautista, who earlier said they were expecting more proposals to come their way.
In reviewing the proposal, Bautista said that ADB would also be making recommendations.
The push to rehabilitate Naia comes amid the complaints over the airport’s operational inefficiencies.
Just last May 1, the international gateway’s Terminal 3 experienced a power outage for few hours, affecting several flights and passengers.
Generator sets were turned on to meet the immediate power needs of the facility but only for mission-critical facilities such as security x-rays and baggage carousels. Unfortunately, the terminal’s generators do not have enough capacity to power the entire facility, leaving some areas without lights and air conditioning. INQ
