THE Department of Justice (DOJ) has given the Toll Regulatory Board (TRB) the go-signal to evaluate and process the $570-million joint-investment proposal of Indonesia-based Citra Metro Manila Tollway Corp. (CMMTC) for the construction of the Stage 3 of the Metro Manila Skyway.

In her legal opinion No. 38, Justice Secretary Leila de Lima said the franchise of the Philippine National Construction Corp. (PNCC) to construct and operate the Skyway and others with private entities, remains in effect.

De Lima noted that the construction of Stage 3 of the Skyway, a 13-kilometer elevated highway from Buendia, Makati, to Balintawak, Quezon City, is in accordance with the provisions of the Business Joint Venture Agreement (BJVA), the Supplemental Toll Operations Agreements (STOA) and Presidential Decree 1894, which amends the franchise of the PNCC to construct, maintain and operate toll facilities in the North and South Luzon expressways, including Metro Manila expressways.

The development of the Skyway, according to de Lima, is included in the BJVA and STOA, which state that “the construction and operation of the Metro Manila Skyway and the Metro Manila Expressway are both necessary and urgent, and have accordingly classified both facilities as flagship projects.”

The agreement further states that pursuant to the PNCC franchise, “the operator has the right and authority to construct, operate and maintain toll facilities…as well as to construct, operate and maintain any extensions, linkages…such as the proposed Metro Manila Skyway.”

De  Lima also noted that the Supreme Court, in the consolidated cases of Ernesto Francisco Jr. v. Toll Regulatory Board, et al., upheld in a unanimous vote on October 19, 2010, the STOAs covering the North Luzon Expressway, South Luzon Expressway and the South Metro Manila Skyway. It also held that the PNCC franchise to design, construct, finance, maintain and operate the Skyway, among other projects, in joint venture with investors, is still subsisting and shall exist for a period of 30 years from the date of the completion of the project.

“This is in line with our position in Opinion No. 21, series 2011, that there appears no more legal impediment to the implementation of the STOAs by the PNCC and its joint venture partners, except the voided provisions therein,” de Lima added.

The CMMTC earlier said the Stage 3 of the Skyway project will cost about $570 million to build and that it may look for other investors to join the company to finance the project.

The CMMTC has completed the Stage 2 of Skyway, which goes from Bicutan to Alabang. It also operates the Skyway Stage 1, a 9.3-kilometer elevated expressway from Buendia in Makati to Bicutan in Parañaque and the 13.5-km at-grade South Luzon Expressway from Magallanes to Alabang.