Completion of NAIA 3 seen to attract more investments

The completion of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Passenger Terminal 3 this November is seen to bring in more investments to the country, says a spokesman of the Philippine International Air Terminals Corp. (PIATCO), which is building the $650-million facility.

Moises Tolentino says a world class airport will help draw investments into the country as it will give investors a good first impression of the country.

Likewise, the push that it will give the country’s tourism will boost industries and encourage possible investments both local and foreign in the tourism and leisure industries.

"The economic benefits that a world class air facility present are limitless," said Tolentino.

He points out that the modern facilities of the NAIA-IPT 3 will be at par with the world’s best airports. It is being built at no cost to government as it is being constructed on a build operate and transfer (BOT) scheme.

Meanwhile, Tolentino decried "desperate efforts" by those out to derail the project. "Their agenda is unknown to us. We just hope that they will not resort to spreading disinformation and outright lies to stymie this project which will benefit the entire country," said Tolentino.

He cites, for instance claims that the project affects the development of the Clark International Airport in Northern Luzon. "This is totally false because the contract to build and operate NAIA-IPT 3 does not establish a monopoly of international airport passenger terminal operations in favor of PIATCO. In fact it expressly acknowledges the continued progress and development of three other international airports in Luzon, namely Clark, Laoag and Subic," said Tolentino.

Likewise, claims that government will be shelling out public funds to shoulder cost overruns if project costs go up are "outright lies," says Tolentino. "PIATCO will shoulder all expenses. Government will not be spending a single centavo. Even if there is a portion of a project cost that is funded by international banks, government will not be made to answer for any possible default as there is no direct government guarantee for any of the loans," he added.

Finally, Tolentino clarified that the German company involved with PIATCO only has a 30 percent equity in the corporation, contrary to claims that it was allowed to own 70 percent, which violates the Constitution. "We just hope that the parties involved in spreading disinformation refrain from such foul tactics and just deal with the facts," said Tolentino.

The German company Fraport AG, maintained that it will continue to participate in the management and operation of the airport once completed to fulfill its role to transfer expertise and technical know-how to make sure NAIA-IPT 3 will meet international standards.