- GILBERT BAYORAN
Public Works and Highways Undersecretary Emil Kiram Sadain yesterday said that the project procurement, including the detailed design of the 32-kilometer Panay-Guimaras-Negros (PNG) bridges project will start next month.
The mega project has an initial funding of P185 billion, Sadain said and confirmed that it will have its entry and exit points in Pulupandan, Negros Occidental.
“It will be five years in the making for the civil works and detailed design,” he added.
Accompanied by Mayor Miguel Antonio Peña and other DPWH officials, Sadain inspected the Pulupandan coastal area facing Guimaras Nov. 10 and said that the bridge will connect Pulupandan to San Lorenzo in Guimaras, and Buenavista, Guimaras to Leganes in Iloilo.
“One thing for sure, the bridge would really be an iconic one, once constructed,” the DPWH undersecretary said.
Sadain added that the bridge will boost the economies of Panay and Negros.
“I think we are in a better start,” he said as he acknowledged the help of Peña in Pulupandan, and the local government officials of Guimaras and Iloilo.
“I think it is a win-win project for everyone, not only for the investors and local governments, but the beneficiaries themselves,” Sadain stressed.
Peña, on the other hand, said the bridge will have a “big economic impact for Pulupandan, especially in terms of livelihood.”
The DPWH is targeting to start the detailed engineering design (DED) activities for the PGN bridges project by the first quarter of 2023.
The engineering services include a preliminary design covering a review of the feasibility study and preliminary and basic design; DED, including the estimation of detailed construction cost; and procurement assistance.
Sadain said in a statement Nov. 10 that the Department of Finance issued on Oct. 24 this year the evidence of authority for the engineering services of the PNG island bridges for the loan agreement to be in effect.
Early this year, the Philippine Government obtained $56.6 million in loans from the Government of the Republic of Korea for the PGN island bridges engineering services.
To date, the procurement of consulting services for the DED and tender assistance is ongoing and submission and receipt of bidding documents is scheduled this December, the DPWH reported.
The 32.47-kilometer bridges project, composed of two sea-crossing bridges connecting Panay Island, Guimaras Island, and Negros Island in Region 6, is a large and complex project that requires comprehensive and high-standard engineering works to be serviced by consultants, who have extensive experience in long-span bridges, which will help DPWH prepare for the construction in an efficient and timely manner, it added.
“We still have a long way to go, but the wait will be worth it as we have the opportunity to make this dream come true,” Sadain said.
Once the interlink bridges are constructed, travel time of commuters and motorists, and the transport of goods from Panay to Negros will be shortened to just less than one hour, from the current two to three hours through Roll-on, Roll-off vessels./GB
