MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) is eyeing to grant the original proponent status (OPS) of the Cavite-Tagaytay-Batangas Expressway (CTBEx) to the Metro Pacific Group this month.
In an interview over the weekend, DPWH Secretary Mark Villar told reporters the agency would finalize the OPS of the project “very soon.”
“I would think within the month. We still need to do a little bit of due diligence. So far so good,” Villar said.
MPCALA Holdings Inc. submitted a proposal to construct a 49-kilometer toll road linking the Cavite-Laguna Expressway (CALAx) at Silang East Interchange to Tagaytay City and Nasugbu, Batangas in July last year.
Once it receives the OPS, the proposal will be forwarded to the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) for approval. When approved, it will then be subjected to a Swiss challenge.
The construction of project was originally set to begin in mid-2019 and be completed by mid-2020.
Meanwhile, Villar also said the construction of the Cavite-Laguna Expressway (CALAx) is on track, with the Cavite segment set to begin construction this year.
In contrast, the Laguna portion of the project is targeted to be completed by the end of this year.
“This segment spans from Laguna Boulevard to Mamplasan, Biñan and travel time will now be under 10 minutes,” Villar said.
He said this cuts travel time by half and is expected to cater to 7,300 vehicles daily.
Estimated cost of the 7-km Laguna segment is P10 billion.
The entire cost 45-km CALAx is estimated at P22 billion. The project will connect Cavitex and the C5-Southlink which will make travel from Laguna, Cavite, Las Piñas, Paranaque and CP Garcia Avenue seamless.
The project is part of the Public-Private Partnership Program of the government and is being implemented by private concessionaire MPCALA Holdings.
“We are pleased that our project is moving as it should be given available construction areas turned over to us,” MPCALA Holdings president and chief executive officer Luigi Bautista said.
He said the project not only brings traffic solutions to the area, but the construction of it has generated jobs.
Bautista said the Laguna segment alone has brought 820 jobs and is estimated to increase to 1,200 jobs as construction progresses.
MPCALA Holdings is a subsidiary of Metro Pacific Tollways South Corp., the business unit of Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. which is the infrastructure arm of the Metro Pacific Investments Group.