Metro Pacific eyes Cebu expressway, Bohol bridge

MANILA, Philippines — The Metro Pacific Group remains hopeful it will secure the contract to deliver two big-ticket projects in the Visayas despite coordination issues and engineering challenges.

The builder and operator of the Cebu-Cordova Link Expressway (CCLEX) will pursue its plans to vie for the P94.07-billion Metro Cebu Expressway (MCE) and P90-billion Cebu-Bohol Bridge.

CCLEX Corp. (CCLEC) president and general manager Allan Alfon said the firm is just waiting for the government to bid out the operations and maintenance deal for the proposed toll road project.

According to Alfon, the MCE remains part of the Metro Pacific Group’s priority list even as the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) is lagging behind the project timeline. The DPWH was supposed to issue the privatization contract for the MCE in the first quarter.

Alfon said the concessionaire for the expressway must be selected before the DPWH begins any supplemental study on the project. The DPWH is scheduled to conduct the supplemental study in September and will end it in February 2024.

“For as long as we see financial viability, investors like us will always want to consider the MCE seriously,” Alfon said in an interview with The STAR.

The MCE will require a budget of P94.07 billion, the bulk of which at P61.48 billion will go to civil works itself.

The MCE, which will span 56.94 kilometers and will be divided into three segments, is relied on to trim travel time from Naga City in the south of Cebu to Danao City in the north.

On the other hand, Alfon said the only feasible way to construct the Cebu-Bohol Bridge is to make it a floating one. Other than that, he warned that it would be difficult for the contractor to put up the infrastructure due to the deep waters and strong undercurrent below.

CCLEC, for its part, believes it may be challenging to deliver the Cebu-Bohol Bridge, especially the portion that will link Cordova, Cebu with Olango Island. The firm expects to receive a set of recommendations from a consultant on how to move forward.