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THE P21-BILLION North Luzon-South Luzon expressway (NLEx-SLEx) link could be the next infrastructure deal to be offered under the government’s public-private partnership (PPP) program, a Cabinet official said.
“We did a review. We are confident that most of the PPP projects will be tendered. Three PPP deals are almost already for tendering,” Budget Secretary Florencio B. Abad said in briefing for BusinessWorld on Friday.
He listed the NLEx-SLEx deal, along with the previously announced Daang Hari-SLEx link and the operation and maintenance contract for Metro Manila’s Light Rail Transit Line 1 and the Metro Rail Transit Line 3, as one of the PPP deals nearing implementation.
“This will probably be ready in the fourth quarter,” Mr. Abad said.
Public Works Secretary Rogelio L. Singson confirmed this, saying, “We have already designated a proponent and we are just waiting for final terms of their unsolicited proposal.”
The proponent, Pangilinan-led Metro Pacific Tollways Corp.(MPTC), submitted an offer to the government last year to build the connector between the North and South Luzon expressways.
This is the only unsolicited proposal in the lineup of PPP deals for this year and officials earlier said it would also be the last.
Once a final proposal is submitted, it will be subject to a Swiss challenge, wherein other interested investors are invited to match or exceed the existing offer.
The NLEx-SLEx connector project involves the construction of a P13.4-kilometer, four-lane elevated expressway over the Philippine National Railway from Caloocan City to Makati City.
“The project will contribute to decongest Metro Manila traffic, particularly EDSA, and provide a 24-hour access to Manila ports by providing faster, safer and comfortable means of transport facility,” a project brief states.
The Daang Hari project, meanwhile, is up and running, with 18 firms recently buying documents to bid for the P1.956-billion toll road. Construction giants such as MPTC, South Luzon Tollways Corp. and DM Consunji, Inc. have all confirmed their intention to join the bidding.
Prospective bidders are required to submit their qualification documents by September 19, while the pre-bid conference will be held on Oct. 28. The bid submission deadline is Dec. 28.
Officials from the Department of Transportation and Communications (DoTC), for their part, could not be reached for comment regarding the status of the P15-billion contract for the two Metro Manila railways.
The project was opened to investors in March but the July 11 bid deadline was shelved indefinitely following a change in leadership at the DoTC.
Newly appointed Transportation Secretary Manuel “Mar” A. Roxas II has said the PPP deal could be shelved as the department looks for more cost-effective ways to manage the two railways.
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Source: Business World, Aug. 14, 2011
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