SM Group to award reclamation project soon

MANILA, Philippines — The Sy family’s SM Group is evaluating proposals for the contract to develop its ambitious P100-billion reclamation project dubbed Future City. 

SM is carefully studying the bids, which include a proposal from Belgium-based giant Jan de Nul, an expert on reclamation which the group also previously tapped for the development of the Mall of Asia complex, considered as one of the world’s biggest reclamation projects.

“All bids are being evaluated,” a source said. 

The SM Group is hoping to be able to award the development contract soon as it hopes to proceed with the project by the middle of the year. 

Future City will rise on a 600-hectare property spanning the cities of Pasay and Parañaque as part of the continuing development of the area around Manila Bay, which is now considered as the next big thing in Metro Manila.

The conglomerate has already obtained from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources an environmental compliance certificate (ECC), which is a requirement to be able to proceed with the project, sources said. 

“With an ECC, it’s almost 90 percent approved,” said a source close to the Philippine Reclamation Authority (PRA), the government agency in charge of reclamation projects in the country.

The group is now completing the rest of the requirements after obtaining the ECC. 

Once compliant, the SM Group can be issued the notice to proceed.

The planned P100-billion reclamation project is an integrated 600-hectare development that is envisioned to be complete with everything a city should have. It will be from the boundary of Pasay and Parañaque in the north, to the seawall project in Barangay Don Galo in the south.

The project would be complete with commercial and residential developments.

The SM Group has earlier contracted New-York listed firm Aecom Technology Corp., one of the world’s largest engineering companies, for the project’s master planning. The project involves the reclamation and development of roughly 600 hectares of land in both Pasay and Parañaque.

The whole project is going to take time, an estimated three to five years for just the land reclamation process, sources said. 

For instance, the 100-hectare Mall of Asia Complex in Pasay had its development start way back in early 1990s but saw the actual opening of the mall in 2006. The mall itself is considered among the biggest malls in the world.  

Once completed, the Future City project is seen as another grand reclamation project similar to the MOA venture. 

According to the PRA, the Las Piñas-Parañaque Coastal Bay Project involves the reclamation of shallow portions of Manila Bay in the southwest of Manila.  

Las Piñas City has 431.71 hectares under its jurisdiction while Parañaque City has 203.43 hectares.  

“This 635.14 hectare project is intended to be a government center, residential, industrial, educational, and commercial zone. It is bounded by Asia World Properties in the North, and the Municipality of Bacoor, Cavite in the South,” the PRA said.

If Jan de Nul bags the development contract, it would be added to its portfolio of projects in the Philippines topped by the MOA development and other reclamation projects in the provinces.