CIAC accepting bids for Clark airport runway repair project

CLARK FREEPORT, Pampanga, Philippines – The Clark International Airport Corp., (CIAC) has started accepting bids up to June 26 for the P18.9-million repair of two portions of the Clark International Airport (CIA) runway.

The CIAC is rushing all expansion and repair works at the CIA in time for the launch of the regular flights of Emirates between Clark and the Middle East, starting Oct. 1.

The CIAC said the P18.9-million budget for the repair of portions D and F2 at one of the two runways here would come from its budget for this year.

“Completion of the work required is 60 calendar days,” CIAC said, noting that “prospective bidders should have a valid PCAB license with at least Category AA.”

It also said the bidder “must have completed a single contract or project involving repair of pavement at any airport within 10 years from the date of submission, and receipt of bids with a contract amount equivalent to at least 50 percent of the ABC.”

CIAC stressed that the bidding process would be conducted in strict compliance with Government Procurement Reform Act and that it is limited to “Filipino citizens/sole proprietorships, partnerships, or organizations with at least 75 percent interest or outstanding capital stock belonging to citizens of the Philippines.”

The P360 million expansion of the CIA terminal is expected to be completed by September, CIAC president and chief executive officer Victor Jose Luciano said.

This, even as Luciano expressed optimism over prospects of the government’s adopting a twin airport system that he had pushed. The system, he said, would allow the joint development of the international gateway in both Clark and Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) in a “symbiotic relationship” to better benefit the public.

Transportation and Communications Sec. Joseph Emilio Abaya has reiterated that Pres. Aquino now favors a dual airport system to decongest the Manila airport. He also said the government is eyeing an initial P3 billion funding for a new budget terminal for Clark by 2015.

Luciano said the completion of Phase II of the CIA terminal would be in time for the regular flights of Emirates starting this October. Qatar Airways will also have regular flights from Clark starting September.

He noted that the regular flights of the Emirates and Qatar from Clark would further boost the volume of passengers at the CIA, as he noted that the volume already increased 62 percent in the first quarter of 2013, compared to the first quarter last year or from 252,163 passengers last year to 408,895 this year.

Luciano said the P360 million expansion would double the capacity of the existing terminal to five million passengers from the current capacity of up to 2.5 million.

The expansion cost would also cover two more passenger boarding bridges, two escalators, two elevators, concession areas, two VIP lounge areas, X-ray walk through machines, flight information display system (FIDS), closed circuit television, background and music and public address system, centralized airconditioning system and building maintenance system, he said.

“We expect the passenger volume to further increase as we are anticipating the start of the Emirates non-stop daily flights between Dubai and Clark and vice versa on October 1,” he said, noting that Emirates would connect Clark to the rest of Middle East and Europe using the Boeing 777-300ERs aircraft.