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MTD Capital Bhd., Malaysia’s second-largest toll operator, plans to bid for the Daang Hari-South Luzon Expressway (Slex), the first scheduled project under the government’s Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Program.
MTD Capital’s move would likely pit it against other major infrastructure players including Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. (MPTC), a subsidiary of the Manuel Pangilinan-led Metro Pacific Investments Corp.
Isaac David, MTD Capital’s country head to the Philippines, said the move is in line with the company’s strategy to build and operate new toll roads connecting to Slex, its main asset in the Philippines.
David, who also serves as president of Slex operator South Luzon Tollway Corp. (SLTC), made the comments as the group prepares for the next major expansion of Slex involving the construction of a 55-kilometer road connecting it to Quezon province.
For Daang Hari, David said it makes operational sense for MTD Capital to bid for the 4-km toll road that will connect Bacoor, Cavite, to Slex near the Susana Heights area in southern Metro Manila.
“I think we would have a competitive advantage [in our bid] for Daang Hari. This is something we are going to pursue. We are purchasing the bid documents,” David said in a phone interview on Friday.
The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) said last week that interested parties for the Daang Hari project should submit their qualification documents by September 19 with the actual bidding expected to follow toward the end of 2011.
In a separate interview on Friday, MPTC President Ramoncito Fernandez said the company is “interested” in the Daang Hari linkage.
But given its relatively small size and its cost of P1.6 billion—a meager amount compared to other projects under the PPP Program—MTD Capital is likely to pursue the bid by itself. David, however, noted that the group is not closing its doors to potential partnerships.
He reiterated that MTD Capital is interested in participating in other PPP projects that have operational synergies with Slex. These include the Naia Expressway Phase II, the Calamba-Los Baños Expressway and the Cala Expressway-Laguna side section, he said.
Meanwhile, SLTC is set to implement the next major expansion phase of Slex, a P10-billion 55-kilometer toll road connecting Santo Tomas, Batangas, to Lucena City in Quezon.
David said construction could begin by 2013 after detailed engineering studies and the acquisition by DPWH of land to be used by the expressway are finalized. He said the government has given SLTC 30 months to complete the toll road, which will be built in several segments.
MTD Capital’s expansion moves reflect the Malaysian company’s continued interest in the Philippines despite recent difficulties that involved raising of toll rates at Slex to help recoup its P13-billion investment to rehabilitate and improve the previously dilapidated expressway.
The full rate increase was implemented in April, after being set back almost one year due to court orders and foot-dragging by the toll regulator.
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By: Miguel Camus
Source: Business Mirror, July 25, 2011
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