China technically admitted harassing the Philippines after accusing US Warship coming close 45 Km to Liaoning

China: photo provided by China's Xinhua News Agency shows the Chinese aircraft carrier Liaoning cruising for a test on the sea. AP/Xinhua

 

On May 2013, a reported in philSTAR  that a Chinese warship chased and tailed, in a provocative manner, the utility boat of Kalayaan island town with 147 civilian passengers, including the group of re-elected Mayor Eugenio Bito-onon, while sailing back to Palawan from Pag-Asa Island in the hotly-contested Spratly region.

 

Bito-onon said the Chinese warship coming from the east side area of Ayungin Reef, used its powerful floodlights while chasing and tailing M/T Queen Seagull.

 

"The Chinese warship was only 50 meters away from our own boat," Bito-onon said, adding that the incident started when M/T Queen Seagull, that left Pag-Asa Island Wednesday morning, was passing by the Philippine-occupied Ayungin Reef at past midnight.

 

In China's Accusation of US Warship harassing them cited the source as saying said the USS Cowpens was operating near China's aircraft carrier, Liaoning, when it entered within 45 kilometers (30 miles) of the Chinese fleet's "inner defense layer."

 

When China harassed the Pag-asa Island Mayor Bito-onon they used powerful flood light (as if there is a flood on the sea) tailed them at a distance of 50 meters or almost to collide the passenger ship in its own territory.

 

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On the other hand, when US warship is at a distance of 45 Kilometers in the international waters, it's already harassment for china.

 

Simply means China is harassing for a lifetime installing their military in the island in Palawan.

 

China paper says US ship was harassing China fleet

 

In Beijing China; -  A Chinese newspaper on Monday rejected the U.S. military's comments that a Chinese warship nearly collided with an American cruiser early this month, saying it was the U.S. ship that first harassed a Chinese fleet.

 

The near collision happened Dec. 5 in the South China Sea when the USS Cowpens was operating in international waters, and the U.S. ship maneuvered to avoid the collision, the U.S. Pacific Fleet has said.

 

But China's Global Times newspaper cited an unnamed source it described as being familiar with the confrontation as saying that the USS Cowpens had been getting too close to a Chinese naval drill.

 

The paper cited the source as saying said the USS Cowpens was operating near China's aircraft carrier, Liaoning, when it entered within 45 kilometers (30 miles) of the Chinese fleet's "inner defense layer."

 

"The USS Cowpens was tailing after and harassing the Liaoning formation," the newspaper quoted the person as saying, referring to the name of the Chinese aircraft carrier. "It took offensive actions at first towards the Liaoning formation on the day of the confrontation."

 

China's Defense Ministry did not immediately respond to a faxed query and calls to its propaganda office rang unanswered. The State Department has raised the matter at a high level with the Chinese government.

 

The incident comes amid heightened tension over China's growing assertiveness in the region. Despite strenuous objections from Washington, Beijing recently declared a new air defense zone over parts of the East China Sea.

 

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Pacific Fleet says it's not uncommon for navies to operate in close proximity and that's why it is paramount they all follow international standards for maritime "rules of the road."

 

The Chinese navy is operating with increasing frequency in the South China Sea and around Japan as part of China's development of its blue water navy. China vigorously opposes all U.S. Naval activity and intelligence gathering in the region.

 

China regards the entire South China Sea and island groups within it as its own and interprets international law as giving it the right to police foreign naval activity there.

 

The U.S. doesn't take a position on sovereignty claims to the sea but insists on the Navy's right to transit the area and collect surveillance data. - philSTAR

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China’s Giant Aircraft Carrier Harassed and Bully small US warship sailing to Spratly after helping typhoon victims in Tacloban

The USS Cowpens seen here in this Defense Department photo

 

Chinese navy vessel sent a hailing warning and ordered the US Cowpens warship to stop. The cruiser continued on its course and refused the order because it was operating in international waters.

 

Then a Chinese tank landing ship sailed in front of the Cowpens and stopped, forcing the Cowpens to abruptly change course in what the officials said was a dangerous maneuver

 

U.S. Navy-China showdown: Chinese try to halt U.S. cruiser in international waters

 

A Chinese naval vessel tried to force a U.S. guided missile warship to stop in international waters recently, causing a tense military standoff in the latest case of Chinese maritime harassment, according to defense officials.

 

The guided missile cruiser USS Cowpens, which recently took part in disaster relief operations in the Philippines, was confronted by Chinese warships in the South China Sea near Beijing's new aircraft carrier Liaoning, according to officials familiar with the incident.

 

"On December 5th, while lawfully operating in international waters in the South China Sea, USS Cowpens and a PLA Navy vessel had an encounter that required maneuvering to avoid a collision," a Navy official said.

 

"This incident underscores the need to ensure the highest standards of professional seamanship, including communications between vessels, to mitigate the risk of an unintended incident or mishap."

 

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A State Department official said the U.S. government issued protests to China in both Washington and Beijing in both diplomatic and military channels.

 

The Cowpens was conducting surveillance of the Liaoning at the time. The carrier had recently sailed from the port of Qingdao on the northern Chinese coast into the South China Sea.

 

According to the officials, the run-in began after a Chinese navy vessel sent a hailing warning and ordered the Cowpens to stop. The cruiser continued on its course and refused the order because it was operating in international waters.

 

Then a Chinese tank landing ship sailed in front of the Cowpens and stopped, forcing the Cowpens to abruptly change course in what the officials said was a dangerous maneuver.

 

According to the officials, the Cowpens was conducting a routine operation done to exercise its freedom of navigation near the Chinese carrier when the incident occurred about a week ago.

 

The encounter was the type of incident that senior Pentagon officials recently warned could take place as a result of heightened tensions in the region over China's declaration of an air defense identification zone (ADIZ) in the East China Sea.

 

Gen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, recently called China's new air defense zone destabilizing and said it increased the risk of a military "miscalculation."

 

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China's military forces in recent days have dispatched Su-30 and J-11 fighter jets, as well as KJ-2000 airborne warning and control aircraft, to the zone to monitor the airspace that is used frequently by U.S. and Japanese military surveillance aircraft.

 

The United States has said it does not recognize China's ADIZ, as has Japan's government.

 

Two U.S. B-52 bombers flew through the air zone last month but were not shadowed by Chinese interceptor jets.

 

Chinese naval and air forces also have been pressing Japan in the East China Sea over Tokyo's purchase a year ago of several uninhabited Senkaku Islands located north of Taiwan and south of Okinawa. –published in Washington Times

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Philippines’ Public sector debt reaches ₱7.8 trillion pesos

 

 

The country's outstanding public sector debt (OPSD) rose in the first semester of the year to ₱7.83 trillion, equivalent to 70.2 percent of the economy, as measured by gross domestic product (GDP).

 

Data from the Department of Finance (DOF) showed the country's public sector debt ratio-to-GDP improved from 73.1 percent in the same period last year and 71.3 percent during the first three-months of this year.

 

The OPSD represents a nominal increase of ₱42.4 billion from the end March 2013 debt of ₱7.69 trillion, while total domestic debt of the public sector decreased by ₱23 billion from March 2013 to ₱5.52 trillion while foreign debt increased to ₱2.21 trillion.

 

Meanwhile, consolidated non-financial public sector debt was up by 4.8 percent quarter-on-quarter to ₱5.7 trillion, equivalent to 51.8 percent of GDP, in the second quarter.

 

The DOF attributed the increase in non-financial public sector debt on ₱169.8 billion increase in the obligation of the National Government, the Local Government Units (LGUs) and the increase in debt of both the domestic and foreign liabilities of the 14 major non-financial government corporations (MNFGCs).

 

The outstanding debt of the financial public corporations, however, declined by 2.7 percent to a level of ₱3.8 trillion.

 

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) debt registered an decrease of 2.8 percent offset by a slight  increase of 0.1 percent in the debt of the Government Financial Institutions (GFIs) from March 2013 level. As of June 2013, 28.7 percent of the total consolidated outstanding public sector debt is owed to foreign creditors and the remaining 71.3 percent is owed to domestic creditors.

 

Likewise, the ratio of General Government (GG) debt to GDP increased to 39.2 percent from 38.5 percent as of March 2013, but lower than the 41.2 percent in the same quarter last year.

 

GG debt includes National Government with Bond Sinking Fund (BSF), the Central Bank-Board of Liquidators (CB-BOL), Social Security Institutions (SSIs) and the Local Government Units (LGUs) less intra-sector debt holdings. – Manila Bulletin

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Conspiracy & Economic Sabotage of power plants operators’ shutdown plants for, high gains- Meralco charge ₱4 per KWH hike in December

Ilijan combined cycle natural gas plant 

 

DOJ, DOE probe 'collusion'

 

Two government agencies are now looking into allegations of collusion among power plant operators that implemented simultaneous shutdowns, triggering a hefty increase in electricity rates.

 

The Department of Justice (DOJ) has started its probe while a tripartite team under the Department of Energy (DOE) is investigating the possible collusion among power producers that supposedly forced distributors to increase their rates.

 

Justice Secretary Leila de Lima yesterday said she had directed the DOJ's office for competition (OFC) to conduct the probe on alleged collusion involving the simultaneous shutdown of power plants, which supposedly forced the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) to hike electricity rates by more than ₱4 per kilowatt-hour.

 

Energy Secretary Carlos Jericho Petilla also said a tripartite team is now investigating the alleged collusion.

 

Under Executive Order 45, the DOJ was also designated as the "competition authority."

 

The DOJ-OFC is tasked to investigate all cases involving violations of competition laws and prosecute violators to prevent, restrain and punish monopolization, cartels and combinations in restraint of trade.

 

De Lima said she was also advised about the intended filing today by certain groups of a formal complaint demanding that the OFC investigate the matter.

 

"As soon as I receive such complaint, I will refer the same to OFC for immediate fact-finding investigation," she said.

 

De Lima said a fact-finding panel would be created for this purpose.

 

Militant party-list group Bayan Muna, along with some consumer groups, is set to go to court this week to stop Meralco's ₱4.15-per-kwh rate increase.

 

A spokesman for the group said they would try to file the petition for a temporary restraining order (TRO) today or tomorrow.

 

Bayan Muna Rep. Carlos Zarate said one of the grounds for the petition would be the alleged collusion among certain power producers, which contributed largely to the unprecedented increase in the cost of electricity.

 

He said Meralco should be stopped from collecting the increase while concerned government agencies, the Senate, and the House of Representatives are looking into the alleged collusion.

 

Congress has joined the DOE in conducting separate probes on the power rate adjustment approved by the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC).

 

Meralco justified the increase, citing the generation cost for its steep adjustment in electricity rates of ₱4.15 per kwh.

 

President Aquino, however, said he doubted the validity of this justification.

 

Aquino had ordered the DOE to investigate the issue, saying a possible anomaly or oversight could inflict "injury to the economy."

 

Press Secretary Herminio Coloma said the allegations of collusion between independent power producers and distributors are "serious."

 

However, Coloma said there must be clear and convincing evidence of such, in order for the government to protect the end consumers.

 

"These allegations are serious, and we need concrete evidence because those who have joined the industry have put their huge investments at stake in rendering service (by way of utilities) to the public," Coloma said.

 

"And the government is also serious in giving protection to our consumers. We will not allow them to take advantage of the situation," he said.

 

Lawmakers earlier said the deliberate disruption of power plant operations is tantamount to economic sabotage.

 

But in case the DOE sees something wrong with the ERC's action or inaction on the rate hike, Aquino said they would have to turn to Congress for help in addressing the matter.

 

De Lima, on the other hand, said she would order the OFC to immediately complete the probe and submit its report and recommendation by next month.

 

Once possible violations of relevant laws are found, the DOJ will then conduct preliminary investigation on criminal charges against responsible corporate officers and government officials, she warned.

 

Petilla, meanwhile, said the tripartite probe would focus on alleged collusion among power plant operators that implemented the so-called emergency shutdowns.

 

He said the shutdowns could have triggered the artificial shortage in power supply to drive prices up at the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM), the country's trading floor for electricity.

 

"Investigation is still ongoing but I cannot give details yet considering it's a tripartite investigation involving the Philippine Electricity Market Corp. (PEMC) and ERC and not just the DOE," Petilla said yesterday.

 

He said the tripartite team is expected to complete its investigation by Dec. 30.

 

"Dec. 30 is the date of fact-finding results. No penalty because we really have no conclusion yet at this point," Petilla said.

 

Coloma said the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA) does not give distributors like Meralco blanket authority to raise power rates with impunity.

 

"We will not allow any unjustified and unreasonable increases, or make them (distributors) take advantage of the situation. That is government's way of protecting the interests of the consuming public," he said.

 

Bearing the brunt

 

In the meantime, consumers are bearing the brunt of higher electricity rates for December.

 

One consumer residing in Taguig City with a monthly consumption of 156 kilowatt-hours found her December electricity bill at ₱2,000 or higher by ₱800 from a November billing of ₱1,200 of slightly lower consumption.

 

Another consumer residing in Pasig with a consumption of more than 300 kwh found her bill higher by ₱2,000 or ₱7,000 from roughly ₱5,000 last month.

 

A Quezon City resident with a consumption of about 241 kwh, meanwhile, found her bill at ₱2,800 from only about ₱1,900 last month or an increase roughly ₱900.

 

Not all of Meralco's more than five million consumers have received their electricity statements for December but Meralco had already warned of record high rates given the one-month shutdown of the Malampaya gas field in Palawan.

 

The shutdown prompted affected power plant operators to use the more expensive diesel in running their plants.

 

The three plants sourcing power from Malampaya are the 1,200-megawatt Ilijan combined cycle natural gas plant owned by Kepco Philippines Corp. and the 1,000-MW Sta. Rita and 500-MW San Lorenzo natural gas facilities owned by First Gen Corp. of the Lopez group.

 

Malampaya supplies electricity to three natural gas power plants in Luzon, accounting for 2,700 MW. In all, these power plants provide 40 percent of the electricity needs of Luzon.

 

As cleared by the ERC, Meralco has said that electricity rates will increase by at least P481 in December, based on the staggered computation of the power distributor.

 

The total increase in electricity rates for a 200 kilowatt-hour household, which is the typical residential user, is ₱2.41 per kwh, according to Larry Fernandez, head of utility economics at Meralco.

 

The increase could be higher for residential users with consumption bigger than 200 kwh.

 

Fernandez said the ₱2.41 per kwh is composed of the ₱2 generation charge, the ₱0.05 transmission charge, taxes of P0.17 and other charges of ₱0.20, Fernandez also said.

 

The ₱2 per kwh generation charge in December is based on the staggered billing scheme approved by the ERC last Monday to implement the ₱3.44 per kwh increase in Meralco's generation charge for December.

 

The ERC has said Meralco may collect the ₱3.44 per kwh generation charge in three installments: ₱2 per in December, ₱1 in February and ₱0.44 per kwh in March.

 

Meralco officials said that aside from the Malampaya maintenance shutdown, the situation was also aggravated by emergency outages of several plants, which led to tighter supply and higher prices at the WESM.

 

In a presentation in Congress last week, Meralco said the increase from the use of liquid fuel translates to just over ₱1.04 per kwh versus the ₱2.38 per kwh increase coming from WESM.

 

"Thus, If Meralco chose not to dispatch First Gas power plants using liquid fuel, consumers will end up paying more," a source from the Lopez Group said.

 

The same source said First Gen's procurement of liquid fuel goes through a competitive bidding. – With Delon Porcalla, Jess Diaz, Christina Mendez (PhilSTAR)

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Good bye China; Japan wins the heart of ASEAN countries for Security and Economic ties-Pledge $20 Billion Dollars Investment

Vietnam's Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung (L) shakes hands with Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at the start of their meeting at Abe's official residence in Tokyo December 15, 2013 - AFP

 

Japan, Southeast Asia agree to boost economic ties

 

Japan and Southeast Asian countries Sunday pledged to boost economic and security ties, a day after they agreed on the importance of ensuring freedom of the skies after China declared a controversial air defense zone.

 

The leaders were discussing increasing exchanges of top diplomats and defense officials and closer coastguard cooperation, finalizing a three-day special summit between Japan and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), officials said.

 

Tokyo Saturday pledged $20 billion in aid and loans to Southeast Asia at the summit with leaders of the ASEAN regional bloc, the latest step in its bid to woo global public opinion in its territorial dispute with China

 

In bilateral talks Sunday, Japan and Myanmar also agreed on an investment accord to accelerate Japanese investment in the former junta-ruled country, while Tokyo and Laos agreed to kick-start talks on a civil aviation agreement, officials said.

 

The talks came a day after Japan and ASEAN agreed on the importance of the "freedom of over flight and civil aviation safety", seen as a mild regional rebuke to China for its unilateral declaration last month of an Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ).

 

China denounced as "slanderous" remarks by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at the summit calling for Beijing to rescind its air zone, which was widely criticized as increasing regional tensions.

 

Beijing has said all aircraft entering the zone have to submit flight plans and obey orders issued by Chinese authorities.

 

Some analysts fear the ADIZ in the East China Sea is a forerunner to a similar zone in the South China Sea, which Beijing claims almost in its entirety.

 

China has sovereignty disputes with four members of ASEAN -- the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei -- and has been repeatedly accused of intimidation and coercion.

 

"We will continue to provide support, both at the public and private level, for infrastructure building initiatives and work toward Myanmar's development," Abe said after meeting with Myanmar's President Thein Sein.

 

In addition to Tokyo's development aid in loans, the investment accord signed Sunday would likely boost Japanese investment in the quickly developing former pariah state, a trade ministry spokesman said.

 

The deal would give Japanese companies so-called national treatment, or rights that local businesses receive in Myanmar when making investment decisions, helping Japanese firms avoid political risks in investing there.

 

The move comes as Myanmar prepares for an economic resurgence following the end of decades of military rule, which in turn is attracting attention from firms all over Asia and the West.

 

Meanwhile, Abe and Laotian Prime Minister Thongsing Thammavong agreed to start negotiations for a civil aviation agreement that would pave the way for direct flights between Laos and Japan, officials said.

 

They also agreed to continue their talks to launch a bilateral security dialogue framework involving foreign and defense officials, according to Japanese officials.

 

With Vietnam's Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung, Abe discussed strengthening cooperation between the coastguards of the two countries which both face territorial disputes with Beijing in the South China Sea or in the East China Sea.

 

In bilateral talks with Vietnam, Laos and Myanmar, Abe took up the issue of China's air defense zone, Jiji Press reported, without citing sources.

 

Dung said the issue should be resolved based on international law while Thongsing said it was important to settle it by peaceful means, Jiji said.

 

With Cambodia, whose economy is heavily reliant on China, Japan is also expected to discuss an aviation treaty and further exchanges of defense officials, officials have said.

 

The Japan-ASEAN summit commemorating 40 years of ties with the bloc comes at a time Tokyo is keen to garner support in its fractious spat with Beijing over the sovereignty of a small chain of islands in the East China Sea.

 

The case has taken on a greater urgency since China's declaration of the air zone which covers the contested archipelago. - By Kyoko Hasegawa | AFP News

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Another ₱1-Billion PDAF pork barrel scam being investigated linked to Roque not to Napoles

Photo: philsStar

 

The government will investigate another Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) scam involving P1 billion and allegedly perpetrated by non-government organizations linked to businessman Godofredo Roque, Justice Secretary Leila de Lima bared yesterday.

 

De Lima said a task force under the Inter-Agency Anti-Graft Coordinating Council (IAAGCC) will be assigned to investigate the charges against Roque by labor group Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino (BMP).

 

"I think Mr. Roque, along with others who also operated their NGOs in amassing PDAF, will be covered by the investigation of the inter-agency task force," De Lima said.

 

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The task force would be composed of representatives of the Department of Justice (DOJ), National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), Office of the Ombudsman, and Commission on Audit (COA).

 

De Lima said Roque's case would be treated separately from that of alleged pork barrel scam mastermind Janet Lim-Napoles, which has been the focus of the NBI probe.

 

"As I have said many times, the coverage of the NBI probe is only Napoles, particularly NGOs related to her and therefore within the knowledge of our whistle-blowers," she added.

The NBI has filed two batches of corruption cases against Napoles and several lawmakers linked to her before the Office of the Ombudsman.

 

"We continue to build up cases on those within the knowledge of our whistle-blowers but are not supported yet with documentary evidence either from DBM (Department of Budget and Management) or COA," De Lima said.

 

As to Roque's case, the DOJ chief said the probe duties would be up to the IAAGCC task force.

 

"The main mandate of the task force is to make independent evaluation of and build up cases from the COA special audit report not covered by the NBI investigation," she said.

 

The probe is pursuant to the Supreme Court (SC) order last month for the government to "investigate and prosecute all government officials and/or private individuals for possible criminal offenses related to the irregular, improper and/or unlawful disbursement of all funds under the pork barrel system," she added.

 

De Lima also bared that the IAAGCC probe would include lawmakers mentioned in the COA report, but were not investigated by the NBI since they had no links with Napoles.

 

The BMP, in its letter-request for investigation, had linked an ally of President Aquino, Iloilo fifth district Rep. Niel Tupas Jr., to Roque's scheme.

 

"Rep. Tupas himself admitted that he signed the documents naming the NGOs of Godofredo Roque as beneficiaries under his special allocation release order (SARO)," BMP alleged.

 

BMP national president Leody de Guzman alleged that Tupas gave P17.49 million of his PDAF for the projects of National Agribusiness Corp. (NABCOR) and the National Livelihood Development Corp. (NLDC).

 

De Guzman said the funds went to Kabuhayan at Kalusugan Alay sa Masa Foundation Inc. (KKAMFI), an NGO which was allegedly endorsed by Tupas to NABCOR and NLDC.

 

KKAMFI is supposedly an NGO of Roque, who was able to amass around P1 billion in PDAF based on reports.

 

"Even if these politicians are allies of the President, your office should not tolerate their questionable acts. We are hoping that your agency will conduct a thorough investigation on the matter and that they would be made answerable before the court the soonest possible time," BMP said.

 

SC again asked to stop DAP

 

As this developed, the Supreme Court was again asked yesterday to stop the Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP) of President Aquino.

 

One of the nine petitioners, former Iloilo Rep. and Technical Education and Skills Development Authority head Augusto Syjuco Jr., reiterated his motion for issuance of a temporary restraining order (TRO) as the SC goes into its yearend recess next week and with just days left in the government's fiscal year.

 

In a nutshell, petitioners alleged that the discretionary fund of the President violates the exclusive power of Congress to appropriate funds, just like in the case of the PDAF.

 

In his 16-page reiterated second motion, Syjuco argued that the people would suffer irreparable harm if Malacañang would be allowed to continue using its remaining DAP funds for this year pending legal questions before the SC.

 

"All facts considered, the petitioner in behalf of all the taxpayers shall suffer imminent and irreparable harm if the respondents are not enjoined from continuously realigning and spending government funds from the DAP despite its constitutional infirmities," Syjuco said.

 

"Undisputed is the fact that the DAP was created not by virtue of any law. Rather, it is a mere unilateral act of the President. Government funds have been continuously emptied out from the government coffers without any valid and existing law that sanctions its allocations and disbursements," he added.

 

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This is the third time Syjuco pleaded for a TRO against the DAP.

 

Earlier, the SC deferred ruling on the prayer for immediate relief and instead set the case for oral arguments.

 

The first oral argument was held last Nov. 19 with the counsels of Syjuco and eight other petitioners arguing how the DAP violates the Constitution.

 

The second oral argument, originally set last Dec. 10, was deferred to Jan. 28, 2014 when the executive and legislative branches would have their turn to justify the legality of the DAP.

 

The postponement of oral arguments, a court insider said, could mean that the Palace would no longer be restrained from using its DAP funds for this year. - philSTAR

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Not China: Consortium Philippine Megawide- Indian GMR the highest bidder for PPP Cebu International Airport

Mactan Cebu International Airport. Photo: PPP.gov.ph

This article would make you confused but take the reverse of the lowest bidder to win a bidding in a PPP project.

If Chinese firms are famous of being the lowest bidder to win a bidding, PPP is open minded to accept the highest price bidder with an expected good output.

Megawide, Indian firm submitted highest bid for MCIA project

The consortium of Megawide Construction Corp. and GMR Infrastructure Ltd. submitted the highest bid for the Mactan-Cebu International Airport (MCIA) expansion and upgrading project.

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The Department of Transportation and Communications opened the financial bids of the seven bidders for the ₱17.5-billion project.

MCIA Authority General Manager Nigel Paul Villarete said the opening of the financial bids yesterday was a success.

Villarete said the Megawide-GMR consortium submitted the highest bid of ₱14.4 billion.

Megawide reported a net income of ₱71 million in 2009 and P335 million in 2010, according to a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange. GMR is a leading construction firm in India.

New terminal

Five of the seven qualified bidders offered bids above the ₱10-billion mark.

The project involves the construction of a new passenger terminal, operation and management of the new airport. It is the first project under the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) program of the Aquino administration.

"The results of the financial bids is a testimony to the government's conduct of the PPP in a thorough, transparent and accountable manner, as well as a demonstration of the very promising viability of the Mactan-Cebu International Airport," said Villarete in a press statement.

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He said that while the bid parameters guaranteed that the government can provide up to ₱4 billion in cash support as viability gap funding to any prospective bidder, none of the seven bidders asked for it.

Instead, they offered premium payments ranging from ₱4.7 billion to ₱14.4 billion, he added.

Villarete said the most important aspect in the process is "not the amount of the bid … but rather the service improvement that comes with" it. - Sunstar

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