The Japan for International Cooperation Agency said it expects to complete the feasibility study for Manila’s new international gateway by early 2016.
“The study will be finished early next year. After the study, we [will be] waiting for the decision of the government,” Jica chief representative Niwa Noriaki told reporters Friday.
Jica’s pre-feasibility study earlier identified five locations for the new international airport, but Jica eventually trimmed the list to central Manila Bay and Sangley Point in Cavite.
Transportation Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya said building an international airport in Sangley Point would cost some $10 billion, while an airport in central Manila Bay would amount to $13 billion.
The government wants to build a new international airport located 25 to 30 minutes away from Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Parañaque City, which is expected to reach its full capacity soon.
Jica said Naia would hit overcapacity this year, with 37.78 million passengers. By 2040, passenger traffic would reach 101.49 million.
Naia accommodated 31.88 million passengers in 2012, exceeding the 30 million yearly optimal capacity of the terminal. Its maximum handling capacity stands at 35 million passengers a year.
San Miguel Corp., which used to operate Philippine Airlines, earlier proposed to build a new international airport at a reclaimed area along the Manila-Cavite Coastal Road for $10 billion. San Miguel returned the control of PAL to tycoon Lucio Tan.
The proposed airport would have an international and domestic passenger handling capacity of 75 million passengers a year, with scalability to accommodate more than 100 million passengers.
It would be only 11 minutes away from the Makati central business district via a new airport expressway.
Jica and the government signed a $2-billion loan for the North-South Commuter Railway Project (Malolos-Tutuban) last week.
The project supports the expansion of a mass transportation network, which is recognized as one of the priorities in the 2011-2016 Philippine Development Plan.