Duterte inaugurates ‘green gateway to the world’ airport in Panglao

President Rodrigo Duterte on Tuesday inaugurated the Bohol-Panglao International Airport (BPIA), the country's first green airport which is expected to serve at least two million passengers annually.

Upon his arrival, Duterte led the unveiling of the BPIA marker and then toured the BPIA Terminal Building.

Dubbed as the “Green Gateway to the World,” the P8.9-billion airport is equipped with solar technology to run its hot water supply system, which prevents the emission of 18 tons of carbon dioxide a year.

Built on a 230-hectare site, the airport’s landscape includes 1,700 trees, thousands of pieces of shrub and 11 hectares of sod or ground surface with grass.

It also has a rainwater collection and storage system to reduce the load on the drainage system.

The Department of Transportation said the Bohol-Panglao International Airport can accommodate as many as two million passengers each year, more than double the annual 800,000 passenger capacity of Tagbilaran Airport also in Bohol.

Aboitiz InfraCapital Inc. (AIC), the infrastructure arm of conglomerate Aboitiz Equity Ventures Inc., will operate and maintain the new airport. 

“In line with AIC's commitment to support the Philippine government's efforts in advancing infrastructure within the country, we look forward to moving ahead with our proposal to provide a long-term solution for the operations, maintenance and future expansions of the New Bohol Airport," Sabin Aboitiz, AIC president and CEO, said in a statement last September.

"Our vision is to transform the New Bohol Airport into a prime example of excellence and efficiency for regional gateways,” Aboitiz said.

After breaking ground in 2015, the airport’s construction was hounded by 48 percent of slippage due to delays prompting the Aquino administration to set the deadline of completion in 2021.

But the Duterte administration, through Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade ordered a 24/7 construction schedule, to expedite the airport's completion. —NB, GMA News