January 12, 2022 | 12:07 am
By Arjay L. Balinbin, Senior Reporter
SPIA Development Consortium, a newly formed group that seeks to develop the Sangley Point International Airport, announced on Tuesday that it had been granted original proponent status for the project.
The provincial government of Cavite has “formally accepted” the proposal, the group said in an e-mailed statement to reporters, adding that it has also been granted original proponent status, or OPS.
“The grant of the OPS gives the consortium the right to directly negotiate the final terms and conditions of the joint venture with the province as well as the right to match the best counter proposal that may be received during the 60-day mandatory competitive or Swiss challenge process,” it noted.
The group said Cavite Governor Juanito Victor “Jonvic” C. Remulla issued the certificate of acceptance to the consortium on Jan. 7.
The governor was quoted as saying the acceptance of the unsolicited proposal is a “clear sign” of the province’s commitment to delivering the project to the Filipino people.
“We are very glad and hopeful that this consortium made up of reputable domestic and well-known global development and investment companies will help us successfully complete the project,” he also said.
The Cavite province previously declared a second failed bidding because no bids came in after the Oct. 20 deadline.
SPIA Development Consortium announced in November that it submitted its own unsolicited proposal for the airport project.
The consortium is composed of Philippine developers and investors as well as global firms. The local lead members are Cavitex Holdings, Inc. and Yuchengco Group of Companies.
MacroAsia Corp., a non-equity member, will provide management and technical services for aviation support as well as the logistics component of the project, the consortium said.
The global firms involved are Samsung C&T Corp., which built the Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur and the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, and Munich Airport International GmbH, the management services arm of Munich Airport.
Arup Group, a London-based design company, is also a member of the consortium.
“The long-delayed Sangley Airport project is envisioned as a fully modernized, world-class and green airport that is designed to meet an anticipated increase in demand for air transport in the next 30-40 years, and as operations at NAIA (Ninoy Aquino International Airport) are eventually phased out to allow for a development of the site and its surrounding areas,” the consortium said.
“After final planning, design and financial closing, the work would immediately begin with the construction of a 4.6-kilometer connector road from the Kawit Interchange of Cavitex that would lead to Sangley, with the time of completion estimated at two years, the consortium affirmed,” it added.
MacroAsia and its partner China Communications Construction Co. Ltd. had negotiated with Cavite for the project in 2020, but the latter canceled its notice of selection and award in January 2021 due to the “various deficiencies in the submission of requirements to conclude the joint venture agreement.”
The province had issued a new invitation for firms to submit joint venture proposals for the airport project but received no bids.