Infrastructure think tank, Infrawatch, yesterday urged the Department of Transportation (DOTr) to proceed with its plan to undertake a competitive bidding for the rehabilitation of Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), despite the P210-billion revised unsolicited proposal submitted to the government by the Manila International Airport Consortium (MIAC).
The private consortium revised its unsolicited offer from over P100 billion to $3.8 billion or P210 billion, which is almost 50 percent higher than the DOTr’s solicited bid proposal that amounts to around P141 billion.
In a statement, Terry Ridon, Infrawatch PH convenor and former House transportation committee member, said allowing an unsolicited private proponent to revise its proposal is akin to a “fishing expedition” on the real rehabilitation requirements of the country’s main international gateway.
“If the private consortium has submitted an initial unsolicited proposal that is almost 30 percent less than the DOTr’s cost assessment, and thereafter submitting a more expensive amended proposal, it can only mean that both parties have entirely different perspectives on how the airport rehabilitation should proceed. But it is government that should decide with finality which rehabilitation areas should be prioritized,” Ridon said.
A solicited bid ensures a focus on managing costs to benefit airport users in the course of private operations, he added.
“Competitive bidding ensures the best price for both the government and the public, as future terminal fees will be dependent on the actual project cost after a winning bidder is selected. Terminal fees will be dependent on necessary rehabilitation costs that were deemed important by the government at the time of project bidding,” Ridon pointed out.
For NAIA’s rehabilitation, a solicited bid should ensure cheaper terminal fees by at least 30 percent if the DOTr’s P141 billion cost pronouncement holds, Infrawatch said.
DOTr and the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) jointly submitted a proposal for a solicited bid with the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Board. This is currently being reviewed.
The NEDA Board’s decision on NAIA’s rehabilitation is expected to be finalized within the third quarter of the year.
NAIA, with four terminals, has a designed capacity of roughly 33 million passengers per year but in 2019, it already reached nearly 48 million and this is expected to hit 53 million passengers by 2025.
In a related development, MIAA yesterday reassured the public of its commitment to complete the thorough electrical system audit that will significantly enhance airport operations.
In a meeting with MServ and Manila Electric Co., the comprehensive plan for the electrical audit was firmed up to ensure that no system will be left out in the course of the probe, MIAA said.
MIAA expressed confidence that with Mserv’s expertise and proven track record, it will be able to bring out the coveted solutions to the present state of NAIA’s electrical systems.
Apart from addressing the electrical system issues, the focus is to make significant rehabilitation, upgrades and improvements to facilities and passenger processing systems.
MIAA is currently fast-tracking the replacement of passenger boarding bridges and chillers, upgrading of taxiways, expansion of the coverage of its CCTV system, digitization of airport operations and passenger systems, among others. MIAA sees the completion of these major projects in 24 to 36 months’ time.
“As we embark on all these tasks, we continuously appeal for understanding and patience from all our stakeholders. With everyone’s support, we can have a better NAIA that we can all be proud of,” said Bryan Co, MIAA officer-in-charge.
