DOTC to bid out new Bohol airport

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) is looking for a proponent for the P4.8-billion new Bohol airport construction and sustainable environment protection project.

The DOTC said the project involves the construction of a new airport in the municipality of Panglao in Bohol that would replace the existing Tagbilaran airport.

In an invitation to bid, the DOTC said the project would have six components that would be funded through a concessional loan from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

The first component covers the general requirements including insurances, employer’s and engineer’s facilities, environment management, project and maintenance equipment, while the second component involves the construction of access road and airport infrastructure including runway strip, runway taxiways, among others.

The third component covers utility works such as water supply, power supply, sewage treatment – followed by the fourth component covering the passenger terminal building, control tower, fire station, drivers’ lounge, car parks toilet, guard house, among others.

The project’s fifth component is the air navigation facilities, while the sixth component is the aeronautical ground lighting works.

The bidding is limited to Japanese nationals in the case of the prime contractor and other nationalities in case of the sub-contractors.

If the prime contractor is a joint venture, the DOTC said the prime contractor should be Japanese and that they should contribute more than 50 percent of the total contract amount.

The DOTC said the bidding would be conducted through a single-stage two-envelope procedure with no prequalification in accordance with the applicable guidelines for procurement under Japanese official development assistance (ODA) loans.

To qualify, a bidder should submit its audited balance sheets or financial statements showing that its net worth calculated as the difference between total assets and liabilities should have been positive for the last five years.

Likewise, a bidder should have a minimum average annual construction turnover of ¥8 billion and its joint venture partners should have been a subcontractor or management contractor for at least 10 years.

The DOTC said a pre-bid conference is scheduled on Jan. 6 while the submission and opening of bids is scheduled on March 3.