Malaysia firm offers P121.8 B to put up government complex in Clark

MANILA, Philippines — Malaysia’s MTD Berhad Capital has submitted to the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) an unsolicited proposal to establish a 207-hectare New Clark City National Government Administrative Center through a joint venture agreement for P121.8 billion.

In a statement yesterday, BCDA said MTD Berhad Capital in its proposal seeks to provide financing as well as technical and engineering expertise for the construction and operations and maintenance of the New Clark City Government Administrative Center.

According to MTD Berhad Capital, the national government administrative center will not just house satellite offices but also the major administrative offices of various executive departments and agencies.

BCDA said among the salient features of the proposal is the construction of an extension office of the President and executive buildings.

The project will also include development of international schools, buildings to serve as housing for government employees, sports facilities, a central communications and security command center, public schools, a government hospital, a public library, and buildings for community centers.

BCDA said MTD Berhad Capital’s proposal follows the practice of other progressive countries such us Putrajaya in Malaysia and Sejong City in South Korea wherein the establishment of national government administrative centers outside the country’s capital helped ease traffic congestion and overpopulation in the metropolitan area.

The state-run corporation said all of the proposal’s components, salient features, and terms would be subject to a thorough review, negotiations, and approval of BCDA.

MTD Berhad Capital is a Malaysian-based investment holding company with interest in civil engineering and construction, infrastructure development, real estate and property development, energy, ports, and manufacturing of construction related materials.

It is the parent company of AlloyMtd Philippines.

New Clark City, formerly known as Clark Green City, is a new metropolis that will rise in the Clark Special Economic Zone in Capas and Bamban, Tarlac.

As BCDA’s flagship project, it is envisioned to be the country’s first and only smart and green city, which will feature mixed-use real estate developments, an agro-industrial park, and a food processing terminal.

The New Clark City complements other BCDA big-ticket projects namely, the Clark International Airport expansion, and the Subic-Clark Cargo Railway, aimed at providing interconnectivity in the whole archipelago, and provide an efficient mass transportation for Filipinos.