The government expects to secure the first tranche of the Japanese loan for the Metro Manila subway project in the first quarter, the Finance Department said Wednesday.
The department said the contract for the first tranche of the 104.5 billion yen ($929.1 million) loan for the first phase of the subway project and the 9.399 billion yen ($89 million) loan accord for the third phase of the Plaridel Bypass Road Project in Bulacan were expected to be signed in the last week of January.
It said the government was just waiting for the approval of the Monetary Board of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas and the special presidential authority for the two loan agreements.
The first phase of the Metro Manila Subway project will run from Mindanao Ave. in Quezon City through the FTI in Taguig City and end at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Paranaque City. The subway will help decongest traffic on Edsa and connect major business centers in Metro Manila to the country’s premier international gateway.
The Plaridel Bypass Road Project involves the construction of a 24.61-kilometer arterial road that will link the North Luzon Expressway in Balagtas, Bulacan with the Philippine-Japan Friendship Highway (Maharlika Highway) in San Rafael, Bulacan to help alleviate the perennial traffic congestion at the core urban areas along the highway.
Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano and Japanese Ambassador Kojie Haneda earlier signed the exchange of notes for the Metro Manila Subway project and the Plaridel Bypass Road.
Meanwhile, the 15.928 billion yen ($142 million) loan agreement for the flood risk management project in Cavite province is also targeted for the Monetary Board’s final approval, with the effectivity of the loan expected in the first week of February.
President Rodrigo Duterte and Japan Prime Minister Shinzo Abe witnessed the ceremonial exchange of the signed loan agreement in Manila on Nov. 13, 2017 for the Cavite flood risk management program, and the exchange of notes for the Metro Manila Subway and the Plaridel Bypass Road Project at the sidelines of the 31st Asean Summit and Related Meetings.
Dominguez and Japan International Cooperation Agency chief representative to the Philippines Susumu Ito signed the loan agreement for the Cavite Industrial Area Flood Risk Management Project, which would be implemented by the Public Works Department.
The project, which aims to control and mitigate flooding in several areas in Cavite that host economic zones and residential communities, stands to benefit some 8,000 households and manufacturing plants in the cities of General Trias and Imus and the municipalities of Kawit, Noveleta and Rosario.
It was among the big-ticket infrastructure flagship projects approved in June 2017 by the Investment Coordination Committee-Cabinet Committee and the National Economic and Development Authority Board chaired by President Duterte.
The Cavite project involves the construction of flood protection measures in the San Juan River and Maalimango Creek Drainage Area of Imus.