3rd bridge winning bidder to be known today

Cebu City Hall’s Committee on Awards is set to declare today Metro Pacific Tollways Development Corporation (MPTDC) as the sole private proponent for the third Cebu-Mactan bridge project.

As of yesterday afternoon, City Administrator Lucelle Mercado, who heads Cebu City’s Joint Venture Selection Committee (JVSC) for the third bridge project, said no private company has formally submitted an expression of interest (EOI) to challenge MPTDC’s bid.

Yesterday was the last day for other private companies to challenge the proposal of MPTDC in implementing the project, initially estimated to cost P27 billion.

“If no firm will submit, we will meet (today) in order to declare Metro Pacific as the winning bidder and proponent for the project,” said Mercado, who also heads City Hall’s Committee on Awards.

Aside from Cebu City, Mercado said the local government of Cordova should also come up with their own declaration of MPTDC as the lone and original proponent for the project.

While no formal challenges were received by Cebu City Hall, two foreign companies initially wanted to propose for the project.

According to lawyer Mary Rose Salvatierra, head of the JVSC’s technical working group, Korean firm Daelim Korea and Chinese firm China Road and Bridge Corporation earlier called the city to ask for details of the project.

But on initial scrutiny, she said both firms don’t qualify to undertake the project.

“Both companies are 100 percent foreign owned. The Korean company was also only interested in the construction of the third bridge and not the operation and management. The Chinese company was okay with operation and management but they can’t qualify since they’re foreign-owned,” Salvatierra said.

She explained that under the Foreign Investments Act, projects that are for public utility in nature should only be undertaken by companies which are at least 60 percent Filipino-owned.