Top local and international firms are competing for the P122.8-billion Laguna Lakeshore Expressway Dike—the government’s largest infrastructure project to date, according to documents to prequalify to bid submitted to the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) on Friday.
A total of four groups signified their interest in bidding for the public-private partnership (PPP) deal. As expected, companies formed their own consortia to vie for the project.
San Miguel Holdings Corp. was the only company that submitted prequalification documents without a partner.
The three others were conglomerates—Trident Infrastructure and Development Corp. or Team Trident of Ayala Corp., SM Prime Holdings Inc., Aboitiz Equity Ventures Inc. and Megaworld Corp.; Alloy-Pavi Hanshin LLEDP Consortium of Alloy MTD Capital Bhd., Prime Asset Ventures Inc. and Hanshin Engineering Constructions; and Rainbow Consortium of Rainbow Holdings Inc., PT Nusa Konstruksi Enjiniring Tbk., The No. 4 Metallurgical Co. of China Ltd. and Shindong-Ah Co. Ltd.
“We are happy that we have four groups who submitted qualification documents,” Public Works Undersecretary Rafael C. Yabut said, adding that notices of prequalification could be issued by March 24.
On March 25 the indicative timeline showed that bid documents will be issued and one-on-one-meetings will then commence.
Those who are still interested in the deal have until July 6 to submit their technical and financial proposals to the DPWH.
The department will then have 20 days to evaluate the technical proposals. The financial bids of those who passed the technical review will be opened and announced on July 27.
The top bidder’s financial proposal will then be scrutinized, and if it passes, the notice of award will then be issued. The awarding is slated for August 21.
By September 20, the government and the private-sector partner should have signed the concession agreement.
A two-stage bidding system was adopted for the auction, meaning bidders must first prequalify on minimum legal, technical, and financial requirements as set by the implementing agency. Only prequalified bidders will be permitted to submit their technical and financial offers for the contract.
The thoroughfare-cum-dike project will help mitigate flooding along the western coast of the Laguna Lake running from Taguig to the town of Bay in Laguna. It will also serve as an alternative transport route to the congested South Luzon Expressway and enhance the hydrology for the ecosystem of Laguna Lake.
The winning bidder will start designing and constructing the expressway-dike by April next year. The thoroughfare should be commercially operational by 2022.
The project involves the construction of a 47-kilometer flood control dike—on top of which will be a six-lane expressway—on an offshore alignment 500 meters away from the western shoreline of Laguna Lake. It includes interchanges, bridges, floodgates, and pumps, from Taguig to Los Banos in Laguna.
It also involves the reclamation of 700 hectares of raw land adjoining the expressway-dike. According to industry players, the deal “poses a lot of risks,” with its dike component possibly becoming a “social infrastructure” and the future expressway competing for traffic with the South Luzon Expressway.