STATE-RUN Clark International Airport Corporation (CIAC) intends to bid out the contract for engineering and civil works design for the new terminal as soon as it gets the second tranche of funding from the Department of Transportation (DoTr).

The second tranche is equivalent to P161.7 million or half of the P323 million earmarked for bidding out the consultancy services for detailed engineering design and project management services, according to the CIAC.

In the absence of unforeseen circumstances, the bid and award process may be completed by the third quarter of 2017, Alexander Cauguiran, CIAC president and chief executive officer, said in statement.

The winning bidder will be responsible for the design study and the draft terms of reference in acquiring the services to build three major civil works including the taxiway, a new aircraft parking apron or ramp, and apron shoulders. The combined cost of is around P2.163 billion.

The board of directors of CIAC will review the design study and terms of reference before approving a work program and seeking the transfer of funds—also in tranches—for the pre-construction supervision and implementation.

The funds will come from P800-million and P2.09-billion allotment to the DoTr under the General Appropriations Act (GAA) of 2015 and 2016, respectively.

Last week, the first tranche of P6.6 million was released by the DoTr to CIAC for hiring of consultants in airport management for approving the terms of reference for the detailed engineering design.

“To expedite the process via rules-based transparency, the initial step is to have the terms of reference approved by the CIAC board of directors,” Cauguiran said.

The release of the funds “is both timely and vital to CIAC’s plans to accommodate the increasing number of passenger traffic at Clark airport.”

The new airport terminal is part of the administration’s “Build, Build, Build” infrastructure development thrust. The project is expected to be completed before the end of President Rodrigo Duterte’s term in 2022, Cauguiran said.

21 March 2017
By Reicelene Joy Ignacio