Aboitiz InfraCapital, Inc. (AIC), the Aboitiz infrastructure unit, is optimistic that  its regional airport projects will start taking off toward the end of this year.

AIC Chief Operating Officer Cosette Canilao said the company’s independent unsolicited proposals for the upgrade, operations, maintenance, and expansion of the Bohol-Panglao International Airport and Laguindingan Airport in Misamis Oriental are on the right track.

“We were granted original proponent status (OPS) by the Department of Transportation (DOTr) for the Bohol-Panglao on September 3, 2018. We are hopeful that the government will allow us to operate these two regional gateways this year,”she said.

Last December 12, AIC took to DOTr some clarifications to address queries on its original unsolicited proposal for the Laguindingan Airport which was submitted on August 10, 2018. “It is not a revised offer but a response to DOTr’s requests [for additional info],” Canilao noted.

She added that AIC has identified an experienced international airport operator to work with on the PHP42.7 billion project. It has tapped design and engineering firm Arup as consultant for the technical studies and masterplan of the Laguindingan proposal.

Apart from the regional airports, AIC is also a member of the NAIA Consortium which was granted OPS by the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) on September 10, 2018 to rehabilitate, operate, and expand the Ninoy Aquino International  Airport.

“We are hopeful that the government will grant the consortium the notice to proceed this 2019 so that we can commence the expansion of NAIA to accommodate 65 million passengers per year,” NAIA Consortium spokesperson Jimbo Reverente said.

In support of the government’s “Build, Build, Build” program and as part of its commitment to advance the lives of Filipinos via infrastructure development, the Aboitiz Group has refocused its strategy to the infrastructure priorities of the country – water and transport projects.