The tollway unit of Metro Pacific Investments Corp. plans to borrow money from local banks to partly finance the first segment of the P12-billion Cavitex-C5 South Link Expressway project.
“A lot of banks have approached us to finance the C5 project,” Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. chief financial officer Christopher Lizo told reporters at the sidelines of the groundbreaking ceremony for the C5 Link project Friday.
Lizo said MPTC planned to borrow between P1.7 and P2 billion from local banks to finance the P2.8-billion first phase of the C5 Link project.
“The full blast of construction would probably start third or fourth quarter of this year, so before that [we will close the financing],” Lizo said.
The remaining balance will be funded through equity by MPIC.
The first phase of the Cavitex C5 South Link construction will start in July, to link C5 and Merville, Paranaque by way of flyover. The second phase, which would start in 2017 to link Merville and Cavitex, would cost P9.5 billion.
“The Cavitex C5 South Link will allow residents from Cavite, Las Piñas and parts of Parañaque to avoid Edsa and take a direct link to and from C5 to the Cavitex,” Cavitex Infrastructure Corp. president Luigi Bautista said.
Bautista said aside from decongesting traffic in the south, the toll road would ultimately increase productivity and activity.
He said the new expressway, which was expected to be completed in 2019, would add 40,000 to 45,000 vehicle traffic per day, on top of the 130,000 vehicles currently using Cavitex.
The C5 South Link will ultimately connect with the R1 Expressway (Coastal Road) and will provide fast, safe and convenient travel for motorists going to and from Parañaque, Las Piñas and Cavite and for Paranaque residents in Multinational, Moonwalk and Merville villages.
The new expressway will not only decongest the Parañaque villages, but will also provide easier travel from Taguig, Makati, Pasay, Pasig, Quezon City and other northern areas to Manila, Las Piñas and Cavite province.
It will also provide relief for vehicles using the congested Edsa and C5 Road arteries of the metropolis.
When completed, the expressway will provide a seamless connection to the Cavitex road network and to the Cavite-Laguna Expressway slated for completion in 2020.
The new C5 Link is envisioned to spur further economic development in Parañaque and in Cavite and Laguna provinces by providing a safe and convenient link from the central and northern parts of Metro Manila to the high-growth industrial and residential centers in Southern Tagalog.
MPTC also operates the North Luzon Expressway and the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway.
MPTC won the bid for the 45-kilometre Cavite-Laguna Expressway and is set to implement the Cebu-Cordova bridge project that will provide a convenient third bridge from Mactan island to Cebu City.