Indian firm eyes Mindanao rail project

The New Delhi-based Ircon International Ltd. has expressed interest in the controversial Pan Mindanao Railways Development Project (MRDP), prompting the government to revive the P200-billion project that has been mothballed since 1998.

Government sources said the Philippine National Railway (PNR) has called for an inter-agency meeting to discuss the possibility of reviving the project after Ircon reportedly made exploratory inquiries about the project.

In a letter to government agencies, PNR said Ircon was specifically interested in the development of the Iligan-Zamboanga segment of the Mindanao railway project.

Ircon’s interest was reportedly sparked by the impending take-over of the National Steel Corp. (NSC) by another Indian conglomerate, Global Infrastructure Holdings Inc.

Ircon is an infrastructure giant that has been involved with projects including railway development in India as well as in parts of Asia and Europe.

Company information said it has so far constructed over 2,500 kilometers of new and rehabilitated railway tracks around the world.

Ircon’s plan to take up the Iligan-Zamboanga portion of the MRDP was expected to add another major sweetener to GIHLI’s bid for NSC.

PNR said that once NSC resumes operations, it would require an efficient cargo transport facility out of Iligan City to a major ports facility, in this case, Zamboanga City.