MPTC to build P17-billion NLEX-SLEX road

MANILA, Philippines –  Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. (MPTC) will build the P17-billion, 13.2-kilometer road that will connect the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) to the South Luzon Expressway (SLEX) along the rail tracks of the Philippine National Railways (PNR).

MPTC president Ramoncito Fernandez said this is being done to minimize the right-of-way acquisition costs in this densely populated urban center. 

He pointed out that the connector road will allow travel from NLEX to SLEX and vice-versa to be shortened to only 15 to 20 minutes.

Fernandez said they are in talks with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) as well as other funding sources to provide financing for the project.

The 13-km connector road, or Segment 11, will connect the NLEX Harbor Link to the Skyway.

MNTC has commenced commercial operations of Segment 8.1 or the NLEX-Mindanao Avenue Link. The extension spans 2.7 km from Mindanao Avenue connecting to the NLEX mainline in Valenzuela through a full cloverleaf, the biggest in the country today. 

To date, the company had recorded a daily average of more than 8,000 vehicle entries in Segment 8.1. “We have also provided a new convenient route for cargo truckers heading North Luzon or to the Port Area,” Fernandez noted.

He also announced that they have made significant progress in the pre-construction activities for Segments 9 and 10, collectively called the ‘NLEX Harbor Link’. 

“We have successfully obtained approval from the Toll Regulatory Board (TRB) for the modified alignment following the rail tracks of Northrail and Southrail. The detailed engineering design for Segment 9, a 2.4-km kilometer road extending NLEX westward from the new NLEX cloverleaf to MacArthur Highway, was substantially completed. We are now working hand in hand with the government to complete the acquisition of right of way for construction to begin” he added.

Meanwhile, Segment 10 is a 5.6-km elevated road from the end of Segment 9 and will be built along the tracks of Northrail and Southrail up to C-3 Road. “We expect that the detailed engineering design would be completed before the year ends,” Fernandez said.

He pointed out that the NLEX Harbor Link shall provide a direct access to the North Harbor from Northern and Central Luzon and from eastern Metro Manila through Mindanao Avenue without the truck ban. 

“This shall allow faster movement of goods and services among various economic centers and would further accelerate economic growth,” Fernandez said.

Segment 9 and 10 will cost P1.7 billion and P6.3 billion, respectively. 

About P7.5 billion, or 30 percent of the project cost of Segments 9, 10 and 11 will be financed from the proceeds of an increase in MPTC’s authorized capital. 

Meanwhile, MPTC subsidiary Manila North Tollways Corp. (MNTC) was awarded by the Bases Conversion Development Authority (BCDA)  the right to negotiate a concession agreement to manage, operate and maintain the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (SCTEX). 

Fernandez said the new concession shall add 94 km to MPTC’s toll road portfolio without construction risk and shall enable the group to secure a long-term operation and management contract for the toll road. 

“In the coming months, we expect the closing of the negotiations and the turnover of the management of SCTEX to MNTC. An integration plan is under way to allow a seamless expressway travel using NLEX and SCTEX,” he added.

Fernandez also noted that MPTC is also expanding its portfolio through acquisition of shares in other toll road concessionaires.

“Among several prospects, we have increased our stake in Citra Metro Manila Tollways Corp., the concession holder for the Metro Manila Skyway. We have also expressed interest to acquire a stake in South Luzon Tollway Corporation, the concessionaire for the SLEX,” he revealed.

MPTC posted a core income for the first half of the year of P752.1 million, 28 percent higher than that generated in the same period last year. But Consolidated net income declined 7.7 percent to P561 million due to provisions related to input Value-added tax (VAT).