The Market Monitor Minding the Nation's Business
By Rose de la Cruz
The successful award and takeover of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport to the New NAIA International Corp (NNIC) led by the San Miguel group has prompted the government to expedite the awarding of five more projects (including three airports) to the private sector under the Public Partnership Program (PPP) late this year and early 2025.
Five PPP projects worth P28 billion would be awarded to private companies this year as the government pushes the modernization of several airports to decongest the capital region and boost the tourism sector.
The PPP Center said among the projects worth P27.95 billion would be awarded for the rest of 2024 and early 2025 to include the New Bohol International Airport in Panglao, Bohol to the Aboitiz Group, through its infrastructure arm, Aboitiz InfraCapital Inc. which has secured an original proponent status (OPS) to operate and maintain the airport for 25 years. A Swiss challenge is scheduled within the current fourth quarter, reported Business World.
Also on the list of projects to be awarded is the 300-bed, state-of-the-art cancer hospital to be built within the compound of the University of the Philippines-Philippine General Hospital (UP-PGH) in Manila.
In April, NEDA said the UP-PGH Cancer Center project’s cost increased to P9.49 billion from P6.05 billion following changes in project terms.
Others for awarding this year are: the Bislig City Bulk Water Supply project, Bislig City Septage project and the Dialysis Center for the Renal Center Facility of the Baguio General Hospital and Medical Center.
The PPP Center said eight more PPP projects, with a total estimated cost of P270.65 billion, may also be awarded in 2025, “if all required approvals are secured by the respective implementing agencies by early next year.”
These include the upgrade, operation and maintenance of the Iloilo International Airport, Kalibo International Airport and Puerto Princesa International Airport.
The operations and maintenance of the Metro Manila Subway and North South Commuter Railway, and the rehabilitation, operations and maintenance of the Metro Rail Transit (MRT) Line 3 are also expected to be awarded next year, Business World added.
The Boracay Bridge project and the Philippine Automatic Fare Collection System would be awarded in 2025, the PPP Center said.
The Marcos administration has vowed to harness PPPs to boost Philippine infrastructure. In December, the President signed the PPP Code or Republic Act No. 11966, which amended the Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) law to create a unified legal framework for all PPPs at the national and local levels.
The PPP Center said under the new law, PPPs are designed to respond to the needs of the country’s green transition, with the law itself and its implementing rules requiring climate resiliency and sustainability “as early as project development and project approval.”
“The use of green financing instruments as one of the alternative sources of PPP financing was also introduced,” it said.
The law allows performance-based payments, incentivizing private sector players to meet the environmental performance standards or indicators for their projects as set in their contracts, it added.
“The PPP Center is also working with development partners to translate these climate resiliency considerations, which are surfaced during project development and approval, into concrete key performance indicators that could be embedded in PPP contracts and objectively monitored during contract implementation.”