Source: InterAksyon, 15 December 2011
MANILA, Philippines – The Ayala Group bagged on Thursday the right to construct, operate and manage the P1.956-billion highway linking Cavite to Metro Manila through the Southern Luzon Expressway, the first public private partnership of the Aquino administration.
Public Works Secretary Rogelio Singson said Ayala bid P902 million for the Daang Hari-SLEX Link Road Project, much more than the P608 million offered South Expresslink Corp., a consortium led by San Miguel Corp. and including Star Tollway Corp., Optimal infrastructure Development Inc., Global Network Investido & CLGP Philippine Holdings Inc.
Government officials said Ayala Corp. would still be subject to a post-qualification process to verify the accuracy of the statements the company made in its qualification documents and bid proposal. If these pass, then the holding firm will receive a Notice of Award.
“But if Ayala Corp. fails to meet any of the requirements or conditions, then it will be ‘post disqualified’ and the Special Bids and Awards Committee will conduct the post-qualification on South Expresslink Corporation,” BAC Undersecretary Rafael Yabut said.
The joint venture of D.M. Consunji Inc. and C.M. Pancho Construction Inc. also prequalified to bid for the four-kilometer, four-lane highway but did not submit bid documents. It instead tendered a Letter of Withdrawal before the deadline for the submission of bid documents at 10:00 am of December 12, 2011.
Synergy with property development
In a statement, Ayala Corp. expects the government to formally award it the 30-year concession on December 22, 2011.
The company tied up withGetinsa, a Spanish engineering company, and expects to complete the detailed design stage in four months.
The road project will provide southern Metro Manila with a high-standard highway within a 200-km radius of the Philippine capital and serve as an alternative route to Cavite, which will help decongest traffic in some parts of the province and Las Pinas and Muntinlupa, specifically the Alabang-Zapote Road and Commerce Avenue.
Earlier, Ayala Corp. said Daang Hari will exit SLEX near Susana Heights Interchange and pass through government properties in Muntinlupa, ending at Daang Hari near Verdana Homes in Imus, Cavite.
“This road project provides significant opportunities for synergies within the Ayala group, especially our real estate group, Ayala Land, Inc., as it cuts travel time to our residential and commercial projects in this rapidly growing part of the metropolis,” Fernando Zobel de Ayala, the conglomerate’s president and chief operating officer, said.
ALI has several horizontal developments in the area, especially in Alabang and Sta. Rosa, Laguna. Moreover, the real estate firm is also eyeing other opportunities in Cavite where it already has an Avida-branded project.
In an interview, John Eric Francia, Ayala Corp. head of corporate strategy, said the road project will improve access to Nuvali, the company’s development located in Sta. Rosa. ALI is also looking at retail opportunities in areas where the road would be traversing.
Since the company has a big stake in this road project, Ayala Corp. is expected to stick it out until the 30-year concession period lapses, unlike its venture in Metro Rail Transit where it decided to divest early before the end of the concession period, Francia said.
Francia said that they hope the DPWH would be able to deliver the right of way within two months so Ayala Corp. can start the project by February next year for segment 1 and September 2012 for segment 2.
The 2.3-km Segment 1 will start at Km 0, located at the Daang Hari-Daang Reyna junction I in Bacoor, Cavite, running generally eastward and passing through the National Bilibid Prison Reservation before ending at Km 2+300.
The 1.7-km Segment II, on the other hand, will start at the end point of Segment I, Km 2+300, and end at about Km 4+000 to connect with the Susana Heights interchange of the SLEX.
The Daang Hari project will be implemented under a build-operate-transfer arrangement. Aside from the 30-year operate and manage concession period, Ayala Corp., will have a 16-month construction period from 2012 to 2013.
The starting toll rate for the road at the opening year is P17 for class 1 vehicles, P34 for class 2 vehicles and P51 for class 3 vehicles, all inclusive of value added tax.
