The infrastructure arm of Ayala Group has formed a consortium with three international airport operators which would bid for the P74.6 billion Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) development project..

Jose Rene Almendras, AC Infrastructure Holdings Corp. president and chief executive officer, did not name the three but said “we have put together a consortium of solution providers.”

“We are happy the way our consortium came out. The people who are joining us are coming from a particular core competency/expertise that can… hopefully … help us win the bid . If we design something more efficient , if we can put the best technology into place that can hopefully reduce cost or increase capacity (that) will help us win the bid,” Almendras said.

The project was approved for bidding under the public-private partnership scheme in the first meeting last September of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Board under the Duterte administration.

NAIA has two runways and is currently operating at maximum capacity with 40 per hour landing and take-off movements. NAIA ‘s four terminals have exceeded their ideal capacity of 31 million passengers, reaching 36.6 million in 2015 .

Passengers are experiencing an average delay of 31 minutes to an hour for flights out of Manila and up to two hours for flights coming back to Manila .

Interested bidders are waiting for the Department of Transportation (DOTr) and Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) to issue the the invitation to bid and the terms of reference of the bidding.

“The private partner will improve, upgrade and enhance the operational efficiencies of all existing terminals of the NAIA covering both landside and airside (except air traffic services), to meet the International Civil Aviation Organization standards and develop the main gateway airport of the Philippines.

To address congestion, DOTr prioritized to build connectivity between NAIA and the Clark International Airport through rail and road, making it more viable for passengers .

DOTr encouraged airlines to transfer some of their flights to Clark International Airport and to move the general aviation to Sangley Airport .

The Ayala Group has won four PPP projects during the Aquino administration: the Muntinlupa-Cavite expressway , Light Rail Transit extension to Cavite, Automated Fare Collection System and Integrated Terminal System South .

19 December 2016
By Myla Iglesias