The Department of Transportation (DOTr) said Thursday it is set to sign the concession agreement with the San Miguel Group on March 18 for the long-awaited rehabilitation, operation and maintenance of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA).
It signifies the official start of the much-anticipated NAIA upgrade. San Miguel Group emerged victorious during the bidding process, after it proposed an 82.16-percent revenue share to the government.
The DOTr said the signing of the concession agreement with SMC-SAP Group would be held on March 18, 2024 at 8:30 a.m., at Kalayaan Hall in Malacanang, which was deferred from the original schedule of March 15 to accommodate President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s schedule.
It said the awarding of the contract marks the beginning of a 25-year transformation for one of the country’s busiest airports which would generate P900 billion in revenues throughout the concession period. The turnover of the NAIA facility to San Miguel Group is likely in September this year, it said.
San Miguel earlier said it proposed not only to elevate NAIA to world-class standard, but also to ensure that the government benefits from the most advantageous revenue-sharing agreement.
“This aims to secure a favorable outcome for our shareholders while prioritizing fairness and long-term sustainability,” San Miguel said.
The project involves capital investment to improve the airport’s facilities to comply with the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and other internationally accepted standards.
It means modernizing the terminals, optimizing and enhancing the capacity of the airport to 62 million passengers a year, enhancing asset quality and passenger experience, improving the information and technology systems infrastructure and ensuring reliable operations over the period of the concession.
The concessionaire will be responsible for both landside and airside operations of the NAIA.
It will be required to undertake works to enhance the compliance, safety and security of the airport, optimize and boost airport capacity to cater to the increasing air traffic, in accordance with objective parameters to be provided in detail in the concession agreement.