DoTr can drop Cavite’s idle Sangley proposal
Credit to Author: LISBET K. ESMAEL| Date: Thu, 27 Dec 2018 16:18:26 +0000
The Department of Transportation (DoTr) may entertain offers from the private sector to upgrade the Sangley airport in Cavite as the provincial government has yet to act on its own P552-billion proposal.
Manuel Tamayo, undersecretary for aviation at the Department of Transportation (DoTr), said the agency had not received any updates from Cavite on its plan to modernize the airport.
The Transportation department earlier questioned the provincial government’s capacity to finance and operate the next major hub. It asked Cavite to iron out the provisions in its memorandum of agreement.
Tamayo noted that while government-to-government deals must be prioritized, the DoTr could “reject” Cavite’s proposal.
“We can reject. But we cannot reject right away because it’s a local government proposal. But private sector also proposed ahead, so that’s an alternative,” he told reporters at the sidelines of an event last week.
The DoTr also received a $12-billion unsolicited proposal from tycoons Henry Sy, Sr. and Wilson Tieng to upgrade the Sangley airport with enough terminal capacity to serve 120 million flyers per year.
The government official stressed Sangley would be developed as an airport, targeting to make it operational by the third quarter of next year. It will initially cater to general aviation business jets, he added.
“We expect to complete everything … Out of 2,300 meters, the runway only needs 400 meters more,” Tamayo said.
While Philippine Air Force (PAF) personnel have been manning the former US naval facility at Sangley Point, the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) will take over after the construction of the air hub, Tamayo said.
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