Cobonpue may design Mactan airport expansion project

MANILA, Philippines - World-renowned Cebuano designer Kenneth Cobonpue will likely take charge of the design of the Mactan, Cebu International Airport expansion project.

Cobonpue told reporters recently that he had been approached by representatives of Filipino-owned Megawide Construction Corp. and Bangalore-based GMR Airports, which won on Friday the Mactan airport deal after posting the highest bid of P14.4 billion.

“We had been discussing,” Cobonpue said. “I told them to come back to me after tahe project has been awarded to them,” adding that he was aware of the delays in the bidding for the project.

Cobonpue had experienced bureaucratic red tape when he, along with designer Budji Layug and architect Royal Pineda, designed a rehabilitation plan for the more than 30-year-old Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 1 for free.

Their offer, however, was turned down by then Transportation Secretary Manuel Roxas II.

The three made the offer after the NAIA Terminal 1 topped the list of a travel website’s world’s lousiest airports to sleep in in 2012.

The airport also appeared in similar lists in 2013.

Last January, a US financial media company also ranked the NAIA as eighth among the 10 worst airports in the world, citing overcapacity issues in Terminals 1 and 3.

World-class Pinoy tricycle

Meanwhile, Cobonpue revealed that he is designing an electric tricycle to be produced here by Filipino-owned electric trike maker, EMotors, Inc.

“Their ultimate goal is to assemble their own Filipino tricycle,” he said of his collaboration with EMotors.

“This is my own brand of design. It’s nice,” he said, adding that the plan will be finished by next year.