11 July 2012, The Philippine Star
by Lawrence Agcaoili
MANILA, Philippines – Twenty-five local and foreign companies, including San Miguel Infra, Mitsubishi Corp., Hanjin Heavy Industries & Construction, DMCI, Sumitomo Corp. and FF Cruz & Co., are interested in participating in the P55-billion Light Rail Transit (LRT) 1 extension project.
The 25 companies have purchased pre-qualification documents for the LRT 1 extension project.
During Tuesday’s pre-qualification conference and investors’ briefing, Transportation Secretary Mar Roxas said the number of bidders will likely increase as the Department of Transportation and Communication (DOTC) begins an international roadshow this month.
“We expect that there will be more joining because we want only the best firms with the best qualification in so far as operating and maintaining a busy train system such as the LRT is concerned,” Roxas said.
The other companies are Macquarie Group, Leighton Contractors, Sycip Salazar Hernandez & Gatmaitan, FSG Capital Inc., EFC Enterprises, Marubeni Corp., BPI Capital Corp., ING Bank, Jorgman Planning & Development Corp., RATP Development, Benchtel Overseas Corp., Comm Builders & Technical Philippines Corp., Lenvoisa Construction Inc., APT Global Inc., Makati Development Corp., Tranzen Group, SERCO Group, Cathay Energy Service Corp. and SYSTRA Group.
Philippine and foreign companies, whether individual or grouped in a consortium, are allowed to join the bidding.
The Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) is set to conduct a series of roadshows in London, Madrid, Japan, and South Korea next month to invite more investors in the proposed P60 billion extension of the Light Railway Transit 1 to Cavite.
Roxas said the international roadshows are tentatively scheduled sometime in August to entice more foreign investors worldwide to take part in the multi-billion peso project.
”We want the countries in Europe and Asia to know about this project. How many projects worldwide amount to about $800 million?‚” Roxas explained.
He added the cost of the project is expected to go down as more investors join the bidding process.
Roxas, former secretary of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said the high profile attention this project has received from major companies here and abroad only shows that the private sector believes in the level playing field in government procurement brought about by the “Matuwid na Daan‚” thrust of the Aquino government.
“This project has been on deck as early as eight years ago, when I was still DTI secretary. However, because of the corroded process involving government transactions, this project was never pursued,” he stressed.
The Manila Line 1 project would bid out the operations and maintenance of the existing LRT Line 1 system, the construction of the Line 1 Cavite Extension, and the O&M of both existing and extension as an integrated system.
The construction of the tracks, the stations and all its attendant facilities, as well as O&M, worth about P30 billion, would be bidded out. The other half of the P60-billion project, which includes the purchase of the coaches, would come from the government through official development assistance (ODA).
The Cavite extension project would increase the span of Line 1 from 20.7 kilometers to 32.4 kilometers and will have a new south endpoint in Niog, Bacoor, Cavite. The extension includes eight stations (with provision for two future stations), 10.5 kilometers of viaduct, support beams, and 3 intermodal facilities.
Approximately 10.5 kilometers of the Cavite Extension System would be elevated and 1.2 kilometers would be at grade level. The government has set aside P30 billion to acquire up to 39 new Light Rail Vehicles for this project.
The extension would open up the Line 1 services to the nearly 4 million residents of Paranaque, Las Pinas, and the Province of Cavite.
Roxas explained that the bidding would undergo pre-qualification to ensure that the companies or even the consortia to be formed have the required financial, technical, and management capability to carry out the project.
The government expects to complete the bidding process by early next year. DOTC is looking at issuing a notice of award to the winning bidder by the second quarter of 2013.
“We are here to ensure a clean, fair, and transparent bidding process. You can now reduce your risk premium for topsy-turvy bidding processes,” the DOTC chief reiterated.
Meanwhile, Ayala Corp. and Metro Pacific Investments Corp., who have teamed up to bid for Metro Manila’s light rail projects, is looking at bringing in another partner.
“There is a possibility that we may bring in another member with technical expertise in the railway project. We are currently discussing it. We will make the proper announcement soon,” MPIC president Jose Ma. Lim said. – With Rainier Allan Ronda
