Play Video

MANILA, Philippines – The powerful body that decides on major government infrastructure projects is set to discuss the fine print of the solicited proposal for the rehabilitation of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) on Wednesday, July 19, according to Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista.

In a Rappler Talk interview, Bautista said that should the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Board decide to approve the Department of Transportation (DOTr) proposal to rehabilitate NAIA on Wednesday, bidding for the project may happen before the end of 2023.

“If the NEDA Board will approve our proposal tomorrow, we can publish the bidding documents by early August, and maybe in two to three months we should receive offers, bids from different groups hopefully within the year,” Bautista said on Tuesday, July 18.

He added that pursuing the solicited proposal route would be faster, as an unsolicited one has more steps which include the tedious Swiss challenge. (READ: NAIA rehab: Here’s what a solicited PPP proposal could look like)

The NEDA Board, which is chaired by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., is reviewing both the DOTr’s solicited proposal and the unsolicited proposal of the Manila International Airport Consortium (MIAC).

MIAC is composed of Aboitiz InfraCapital, AC Infrastructure, Asia’s Emerging Dragon Corporation, Alliance Global-InfraCorp Development, Filinvest Development Corporation, JG Summit Infrastructure Holdings Corporation, and Global Infrastructure Partners. (READ: What’s inside MIAC’s P267-B plan to privatize and rehabilitate NAIA?)

A solicited proposal is submitted in response to a request made by the government, which usually already outlines certain terms and conditions. Meanwhile, an unsolicited proposal is submitted before any such request is made by the government.

Bautista said he could not go into detail about the differences of the two proposals yet due to the NEDA Board’s review, but noted that the key difference lies in the revenue sharing and timing of infrastructure investment.

Bautista said their solicited proposal is asking for a higher revenue share for the government than MIAC’s bid.

The government proposal is also asking the private sector to pour in more cash for the first five years of the rehabilitation. Bautista said this ensures that changes would be more evident and immediate.

The transport chief added that MIAC is also asking for government “commitments,” including some form of subsidy or guarantee that the consortium’s members would be able to recover their investments.

“We can also give that but under certain terms. Merong limitations ang puwede naming ibigay (There are limitations to what we can give),” Bautista said. – Rappler.com