MOU forged to finish NAIA-3

MANILA, Philippines - Nearly a decade after its original inauguration date, Terminal 3 of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) may soon be fully and completely operational.

The Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) announced yesterday that it had signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with top officials of Takenaka Corp. of Japan for completion of the unfinished portion of the controversial NAIA 3 complex.

Transportation Secretary Manuel Roxas II signed the MOU during a trip to Tokyo while Toichi Takenaka, president and executive officer, represented Takenaka Corp.

Part of the MOU, the DOTC said, was the “Civil Works Agreement (CWA) Estimate of 23 Systems,” which covers the delivery of 23 airport systems critical to make the facility fully operational.

DOTC and Takenaka, under the MOU, agreed to execute the CWA within 30 days from the date of execution of the agreement.

“We would like to thank Takenaka Corp. for being both thorough and sincere in negotiating with us,” Roxas said.

He said it was with the cooperation of the Japanese company that the deal was signed in record time.

Last month, Roxas said that only 50 percent of NAIA 3 was functional and the DOTC was aiming to make it 75 percent operational by December and the remaining 25 percent by the first quarter of next year.

The 23 airport systems include baggage handling and reconciliation system, flight information display system, building management system, local area network, fire alarm and protection system, and passenger loading bridges.

Takenaka was the original contractor commissioned by Philippine International Air Terminals Co. (Piatco) to build NAIA 3 in 1998. However, construction at Terminal 3 was halted in 2002 after allegations of anomalies cropped up.

The Supreme Court had also nullified the build-operate-transfer contract of Piatco after finding amendments made on it were highly disadvantageous to the government.

In order to finally utilize Terminal 3, the DOTC, under Roxas, began negotiations with Takenaka Corp.

Once completed, the 182,500-square meter terminal would have the capacity to service up to 33,000 passengers daily at peak or 6,000 passengers per hour. It also has 34 air bridges and 20 contact gates, allowing it to service 28 planes simultaneously.

DOTC said that some of the operations of the more than 30-year-old NAIA Terminal I building would be transferred to Terminal 3 once the 23 systems are delivered.

This will result in decongestion of passenger traffic in Terminal 1 for a more convenient and efficient air transport system.

Takenaka is among the so-called “Big Five” contractors in Japan. The family enterprise has built some of the most important buildings in Japan, such as the Tokyo Tower, the Tokyo Dome, the Fukuoka Dome, and the Kobe Meriken Park Oriental Hotel, among others. Louella Desiderio