DOTr eyes completion of P1-trillion worth of airport projects in 2023

The Department of Transportation (DOTr) is targeting to complete P1-trillion worth of construction and rehabilitation projects involving regional airports across the country by next year.

According to Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista, the department is looking to boost airport terminal building capacity and improve airport facilities through technology solutions.

“These projects are all set to be completed by 2023. They have a total projected cost of close to P1 trillion — that’s a T, not a B,” he said during the EJAP Infrastructure Forum.

Among the projects set to be constructed and enhanced are the Antique Airport, the Bacolod-Silay Airport, the Catbalogan Airport, the Davao International Airport, the M’Land Airport, the Ozamis Airport, the San Vicente Airport, the Sanga Sanga Airport in Tawi-Tawi, the Tacloban Airport, and the Tuguegarao Airport.

Bautista said some 10 regional airports are also being planned to be upgraded, expanded, and operated under a public-private partnership scheme.

These include airports in Bacolod, Bicol, Bohol, Busuanga, Davao, Iloilo, Kalibo, Laguindingan, Puerto Princesa, and Siargao.

Four new regional airports are also set to be built in Dumaguete, Masbate, Siargao, and Zamboanga.

A number of the projects have been in the pipeline for years, but have yet to be fully completed.

Bautista said the DOTr is also looking at modernizing existing major international gateways through ongoing projects such as the P206.96-million airside improvement projects at the Bicol International Airport.

The Clark International Airport — operated by the Luzon International Premier Airport Development (LIPAD) Consortium — started to accept passengers in May. It was undertaken as a hybrid public-private partnership project headed by the Megawide GMR Construction Joint Venture Inc.

Meanwhile, the P500-million construction of the Sangley Point International Airport is expected to start in 2023, which was awarded to the SPIA Development Consortium.

“While there may be challenges in the completion of these big-ticket projects, the DOTr, CAAP, and other aviation agencies continuously work towards creating a fully connected Philippine sky,” Bautista said.—AOL, GMA News