Razon also interested to join SMC’s airport project

MANILA, Philippines - Port magnate and casino owner Enrique K. Razon Jr. is willing to take part in the proposed $10-billion international airport of conglomerate San Miguel Corp. (SMC), continuing the outpour of the business sector’s support for the key infrastructure project.

“I wish SMC all the power in the world and the luck to do that because we need the airport,” said Razon, chairman of International Container Terminal Services Inc. and Bloomberry Resorts Corp., on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum on East Asia.

While the group has yet to be asked to join the airport project, Razon said he is willing to participate “if [SMC] goes out asking for partners and people to join because we really need [the airport].”

“It’s synergistic with the tourism business, not with the ports,” Razon said. Bloomberry is the owner of the $1.2-billion Solaire Resort and Casino along Manila Bay.

The $750-million Phase 1 of Solaire, which offers 500 rooms, 18,500 square meters of gaming space and 15 luxurious dining options, opened in March last year. Bloomberry is spending $450 million for the Phase 1A expansion that will allow the company to open a 300-all-suite hotel and offer 3,900 parking slots, a shopping center with luxury brand stores and an entertainment theater this year.

Last week, SMC submitted to President Aquino a proposal to build a new $10-billion airport that would replace the congested Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA).

SMC president and chief operating officer Ramon S. Ang earlier mentioned the Ayala and SM conglomerates as potential partners in the infrastructure project. JG Summit Holdings Inc. of taipan John Gokongwei Jr. and SM already expressed their interest in the project.

“We have to talk. It’s good for our country,” SM Investments Corp. chief finance officer Jose Sio earlier said.

The planned airport will be situated in the almost 800-hectare property of CyberBay Corp. along the Manila-Cavite coastal road, Ang said.

The government has allocated P1.3 billion for the rehabilitation of the NAIA Terminal 1 being undertaken by DM Consunji Inc. and another P1.9 billion for the retrofitting of NAIA Terminal 3 being conducted by Takenaka Corp. of Japan to be completed in time for the country’s hosting of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation summit scheduled in 2015.

The NAIA Terminal 1 is operating beyond its design capacity of 4.5 million as it is now handling more eight million passengers annually. The retrofitting of NAIA 3 would help accommodate the excess passengers from NAIA 1 as it is only operating at about half of its total capacity of 13 million passengers a year.

Data from the Manila International Airport Authority showed the number of domestic and international passengers served by NAIA climbed over three percent to 32.865 million last year from 31.877 million in 2012.