Tieng-led group offers $12 B to build new Sangley aiport

MANILA, Philippines — The group composed of businessman Wilson Tieng’s All-Asia Resources Reclamation Corp. (ARRC) and the Sy family’s Belle Corp. has submitted a $12-billion proposal to finance, construct and develop a new airport to be called Philippine Sangley International Airport (PSIA) in Sangley, Cavite. 

In a statement issued over the weekend, the consortium, known as Sangley Airport Infrastructure Group Inc., said the proposal seeks to make PSIA a regional airport hub which could accommodate about 120 million passengers per year.

It said the proposal would entail an investment of $12 billion for development cost alone and a concession period of 50 years. 

The project would begin with the reclamation of about 2,500 hectares of land north of the Sangley peninsula, which will be used for the development of airport infrastructure and a commercial establishment.

Also part of the proposal is the development of airside and landside facilities and transportation infrastructure to provide access to PSIA. 

The PSIA will have two parallel independent runways and sufficient airside and terminal capacity to accommodate future domestic, international and transfer traffic, not only for the Philippines but for the Southeast Asian region.

PSIA’s design is also optimized in relation to wind conditions and obstacle limitation surfaces zones or the airspace around an airport that needs to be protected from obstacles so an aircraft can fly safely during the initial and final stages of the flight. 

Development of the PSIA would also involve rehabilitation of the Danilo Atienza Air Base, which will be later used as a general aviation airport to ease congestion at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA).

Upon inauguration, the Danilo Atienza Air Base area will be transformed into an “aerotropolis” district where service buildings, office towers, hotels, conference centers and other related developments would be established.

Once the PSIA is completed, it is envisioned to compete with other premier airports in Southeast Asia like those in Bangkok in Thailand, Seoul in South Korea, Hong Kong and Singapore.

It is expected to put the Philippines at par with other progressive countries in Asia in terms of airport infrastructure as it allows an expansion of both runway and terminal capacity with lesser constraints.

The proposal is likewise seen to support government’s multi-airport strategy as it complements other airport infrastructure projects of the government such as the Clark International Airport which is currently being expanded.

“The project will be conducted at no cost to the government and is seen to open a new regional gateway that can accommodate millions of passengers and significantly help increase tourist arrivals,” the consortium said. 

Aside from helping attract investments into the country by allowing the government to redevelop a prime property, the proposal is also seen to free up NAIA terminals and help ease traffic since passengers from the south utilizing the new airport would no longer need to enter Metro Manila.

Earlier, the group said it submitted a proposal to build an international airport, seaport and mixed use development on reclaimed land off the coast of Sangley Point in Cavite at a cost of P1.3 trillion.