San Miguel Corp. eyes control of Tarlac-La Union road project

MANILA, Philippines - Food and beverage giant San Miguel Corp. is looking to acquire a controlling interest in the P15-billion Tarlac-La Union Expressway project, an official of one of the project proponents said.

Isidro Consunji, president of DMCI Holdings Inc., said San Miguel has started its 60-day due diligence study on the project. “They are looking to acquire 51 percent,” he said.

The project is being undertaken by a consortium of local private contractors called Private Infra Development Corp. (PIDC), in which DMCI owns a 34-percent stake.

The operate-build-transfer (BoT) project involves the construction of an 88.5-kilometer, four-lane expressway from La Paz in Tarlac to Rosario in La Union.

Tarlac is a critical crossroad for the project as it completes the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway and North Luzon Expressway loops.

Construction is scheduled to begin this year and is targeted for completion in 2012. Once completed, travel time from Manila to Baguio will be reduced from six to three hours with a safe speed of 80 kilometers per hour.

The project’s first section is set for completion and operation by 2010 while full tollway operations is expected by 2013.

Aside from DMCI, other members of the consortium include the Lopez-led First Balfour, EEI Corp., C.M. Pancho Construction, R.D. Policarpio & Co. Inc., D.M. Wenceslao & Associates, J.V. Angeles Construction, J.E. Manalo & Co. Inc., New Kanlaon Construction Inc. and Rockford Development.

First Balfour has a 34-percent interest in the consortium while the rest hold between two to six percent interest.