DOTr: Five firms bid for NAIA privatization

At least five companies have already secured bid documents for the privatization of Ninoy Aquino International Airport’s (NAIA) operations, maintenance, and rehabilitation, the Department of Transportation (DOTr) said Wednesday.

The five potential bidders, who bought bid documents as of September 13, for the P170.6-billion NAIA Public-Private Partnership (PPP) project, include three major groups —San Miguel Corp., GMR, and Manila International Airport Consortium (MIAC).

Also joining the NAIA privatization bid are Spark 888 Management Inc. and Asian Airport Consortium.

To recall, MIAC  had submitted a P267 billion unsolicited proposal to rehabilitate and develop the NAIA into a modernized gateway.

MIAC is composed of US-based Global Infrastructure Partners and Philippine conglomerates Aboitiz InfraCapital Inc., AC Infrastructure Holdings Corp., Asia’s Emerging Dragon Corp., Alliance Global-Infracorp Development Inc., Filinvest Development Corp., and JG Summit Infrastructure Holdings Corp.

The unsolicited proposal, however, was deemed “de facto closed” after the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Board, headed by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., approved the DOTr and Manila International Airport Authority’s (MIAA) joint proposal to privatize the operations of the NAIA through a solicited mode.

In June, the DOTr and MIAA submitted a joint proposal to the NEDA Board seeking a private concessionaire to invest in modern air traffic control equipment, rehabilitate runways and taxiways, and improve existing terminal facilities for a period of 15 years.

The DOTr also expressed intent to lengthen the concession period for another 10 years if the completion and start of operations of the two new airports —Bulacan Airport and Sangley International Airport— are delayed.

Conglomerate San Miguel Corp. is currently constructing the New Manila International Airport in Bulacan.

Indian multinational company GMR is the joint venture partner of local construction giant Megawide Construction Corp. in developing and operating the Mactan Cebu International Airport.

Late in August, the DOTr opened the NAIA privatization project for potential bidders as it invited interested firms to qualify and bid for the contract to rehabilitate, operate, optimize and maintain the country’s main gateway through a Rehabilitate-Operate-Expand-Transfer arrangement.

The competitive bidding process for the potential party who will bag the contract to operate NAIA is in accordance with Republic Act No. 6957, as amended by Republic Act No. 7718, otherwise known as the Build-Operate-and-Transfer Law (BOT Law) and its Revised 2022 Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR), according to the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Center.

Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista earlier said the winning bidder for the NAIA privatization plan could be known by December as the agency aims to open the bidding in August.

The DOTr said the P170.6-billion NAIA PPP Project will cover all facilities of the country's main gateway, including its runways, four terminals, and associated facilities.

The project is expected to improve overall passenger experience and increase the current annual passenger capacity of NAIA to at least 62 million from the current 32 million as well as increase air traffic movement from 40 to 48 per hour.

The goal of the project is to address longstanding issues at NAIA such as the inadequate capacity of passenger terminal buildings and restricted aircraft movement.

As early as January, Bautista has said that the agency is preparing the terms of reference for NAIA’s privatization as it tapped the assistance of the Asian Development Bank.

In December last year, the DOTr said it may have the option to close the NAIA, when the proposed gateways in Bulacan and Cavite become operational.—LDF, GMA Integrated News