Clark Freeport”•The Manila International Airport Authority will likely grant this week the original proponent status to Naia Consortium for the rehabilitation, operation, and maintenance of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, according to Trade Secretary Arthur Tugade.
“We have a decision recommending the issuance of original proponent status to Naia Consortium. We gave the recommendation to MIAA because they are the primary agency, not the DOTr,” Tugade said in a news briefing.
MIAA general manager Ed Monreal confirmed that he received the endorsement letter from the DOTr for the Naia rehabilitation and O&M.
“They give us the notice to adopt the proposal and this will be discussed by the MIAA board. The board will convene this Thursday to discuss the proposal [of NAIA Consortium],” Monreal said.
The Naia Consortium proposed to expand and interconnect the existing terminals of Naia, upgrade airside facilities and develop commercial facilities to increase airline and airport efficiencies, enhance passenger comfort and experience and improve public perception of Naia as the country’s premier international gateway.
The consortium’s members are Aboitiz InfraCapital Inc., AC Infrastructure Holdings Corp., Alliance Global Group Inc., AEDC, Filinvest Development Corp., JG Summit Holdings Inc. and Metro Pacific Investments Corp.
The consortium committed to spend P106 billion for a 15-year concession period, down from the original proposal of 35 years.
Construction of the additional runway will ensure the ability of Naia to serve as Manila’s gateway in the years to come, bringing potential capacity up to 100 million passengers per year from over 40 million passengers last year.
The upgrades will elevate Naia to the level of major regional airports such as Changi in Singapore and Suvarnabhumi in Bangkok. It is also seen to become a viable transit hub for the Asean region.
Naia Consortium tapped Changi Airports International Pte. Ltd. of Singapore to provide technical support in the areas of master planning, operations optimization and commercial development.
The consortium submitted its proposal to the government on Feb. 12, ahead of Megawide GMR submission on March 1.
Megawide GMR’s $3-billion investment proposal to rehabilitate Naia includes all airside, terminal and landside improvement which will be done in three phases.
The consortium targets to increase the total annual throughput of Naia to 72 million passengers.