watch out for MCIA's soon-to-be revamp

in an earlier posting i lamented that while cebu is one of the top destinations in the country, it's current airport is rather wanting in many areas. being the second largest airport in the country in terms of passenger traffic, its facilities are rather old, and entire space is small. but there's some GOOD NEWS!!!

i was checking my col financial account earlier and there was this piece of news about MCIA (Mactan Cebu International Airport). as i'm not one to believe news readily, i googled the subject and i found myself in the country's public-private partnership (PPP) center's website. the website features all the PPPs happening and currently under bidding process. from its april 10, 2013 status update, filed under "projects with live bidding", i found the following information:

info/photo credit: public-private partnership center

the following texts are lifted from the same website mentioned above:

• Implementing Agency
- Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC)
• Project Description
- The project involves the construction of a new world-class passenger terminal building in MCIA, with a capacity of about 8 million passengers per year; and the operation of the old and new facilities. The construction of a new world-class passenger terminal, including all related facilities, is proposed to separately cater to domestic and international operations.
• Estimated Project Cost
• Phase 1: (Initial Investment) PHP 8.873 Billion
• Phase 2: (Future Expansion) PHP 8.647 Billion
• PPP Structure
- Build-Rehabilitate-Operate-Transfer (BROT)
• Prospective Bidders of the PhP 17.2 Billion Project
1. The MPIC-JG Consortium led by MPIC-JGS Airport Holdings Inc.
— a joint venture between Metro Pacific Investments Corp. and JG Summit Holdings, Inc. French airport operator Aeroports De Lyon was named as its operation and maintenance (O&M) partner.
2. AAA Airport Partners, which is led by the Ayala-Aboitiz joint venture A2 Airport Partners with Texas-based ADC & HAS Airport Worldwide, Inc. Its O&M partner is Houston Airport System.
3. Filinvest-CAI Consortium, led by Filinvest Development Corp. with Changi Airports Mena Pte. Ltd. - The group appointed Changi Airport Saudi Ltd. as its O&M partner.
4. San Miguel-Incheon Airport Consortium, led by Incheon International Airport Corp. with San Miguel Corp.’s Optimal Infrastructure Development, Inc., Mactan Capitana Holdings, Inc. and Skylake Incuvest & Co. Incheon will also act as the O&M partner.
5. First Philippine Airports, led by First Philippine Holdings, Inc. with Infratil Asia, Ltd. Its O&M partners are Wellington International Airport Ltd., NZ Airports Ltd., and Infratil Ltd.
6. Premier Airport Group composed of SM Investments Corp., Citadel Holdings, Inc., Zurich Airport International AG and Prospector Investments Holdings, Inc. Switzerland-based Flughafen Zurich AG is the O&M partner.
7. GMR Infrastructure and Megawide Consortium, led by Megawide Construction Corp. together with India-based GMR Infrastructure Ltd. The consortium tapped Delhi International Airport (P) Ltd. and GMR Hyderabad International Airport Ltd. as its O&M partners.

my untrained eyes tell me these 7 are some big guns. so, there's something to look forward to with cebu's airport soon. pre-qualified firms will be announced on may 17. said firms will have until my birthday, august 2 to submit their bids. notice of award will be issued on september 17, to be followed by the october 4-contract signing.

FUN TIMES AHEAD for TRAVELERS to CEBU!!!