Palawan ports set for P1 billion upgrade

MANILA, Philippines — Seeing the prospect of Palawan as a tourist hotbed, the government is set to undertake nearly P1 billion in upgrades for ports in the province to improve its infrastructure for travel and tourism.

In a series of invitations to bid, the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) said it is looking for contractors that would upgrade the Port of Puerto Princesa and its nearby facilities.

The PPA will spend as much as P599.15 million for the first phase of the Puerto Princesa Port Expansion Project.

Under this, the contractor will be assigned to do the removal and excavation works, and will also be tasked to enclose and improve the port operational area. The winning bidder for the project will be given a total of 660 days to complete the first leg of the expansion.

Meanwhile, the PPA is spending P386.22 million for the construction of aids to marine navigation in six ports in Palawan. Based on the invitation to bid, the project covers the Ports of Puerto Princesa, Brooke’s Point, Roxas, Taytay, Culion and El Nido.

The contractor will be given 134 days to complete the installation of aids to marine navigation in Palawan.

Aids to marine navigation include beacons, buoys, lights, marks, among others, all of which are placed in the seas to serve as guide for navigators.

At times, these aids are placed in areas of waters to identify the limits of navigable channels, or warn shippers of possible obstructions.

The PPA will hold a pre-bid conference for both contracts on May 30 to answer questions from all prospective participants. Afterward, the agency will close the submissions and open the offers on June 14.

Recently, the PPA focused on building up the tourism potential of ports to cater to the travel demand by sea. For one, the agency aims to open a dedicated terminal for cruise ships in surfing haven Siargao by the third quarter.

The PPA also seeks to build a similar facility in Coron to welcome cruise tourists in Palawan.

The Philippines was recently selected as the Best Cruise Destination in Asia by the World Cruise Awards in 2023.