Airport project seen to generate up to P10 billion in new investments

MANILA, Philippines - Investments worth up to P10 billion are expected to enter Boracay after the private sector builds its new international airport, Caticlan International Airport Development Corp. (CIADC) Financial adviser Joey Valdes said.

Akean Resorts Corp., the owner of the land where the new airport will be built, said they will develop a resort city near the airport.

Meanwhile, more tourists will be able to fly in and out of Boracay as the government and the private sector announced they will start the refurbishing of the new airport which will triple the size of the existing terminal in Caticlan.

The project is part of the P2.5-billion infrastructure project of the CIADC led by George Yang and the Alba-owned Akean Resorts Corp.

This is the first time the private sector has undertaken the development of an airport. Most of the proponents of the project have investments in hotels and resorts in Boracay.

Yang said the existing airport is only 500 square meters. However, after phase one A of the project, the airport will now have two floors waiting area and will be 1,600 square meters big. Phase one A, which will be done in the next six months, involves improving the existing terminal. It includes putting up more safety equipment and more conveyors.

Phase one B on the other hand involves the extension of the runway to 1.95 kilometers in order to accommodate larger planes.

Phase two, which costs almost P2 billion, will include the reclamation of 1.5 kilometers of land in order to extend further the runway to 2.1 kilometers.

Yang said this will make Caticlan Airport an international airport. He said the goal is to allow regional carriers to fly directly to Caticlan. From the existing 650,000 visitors per year to the island, the new airport will increase it to one million tourists annually. The airport has a capacity of 1.5 million.

The last phase will be the construction of a new terminal. Architect Basilio Valdez said the new airport will be a green airport because it will use solar and wind energy. “This airport will be the least dependent on normal energy.”

Likewise, Valdez said the airport will have a resort like quality. He said the design will be like two sailboats merging — one for departure and the other for arrival.