South Luzon Tollways Corp. secured an approval from the Board of Investments on its P13.1-billion expressway stretching from Batangas to Quezon.
The tollway unit of San Miguel Corp. said its board of directors “approved to accept all the specific and general terms and conditions of the BOI in relation to the approval of the registration as a new operator of Tollways Project (SLEX Toll Road 4) on a non-pioneer status under Executive Order No. 226 and the 2017 Investments Priorities Plan, as listed in the BOI Project.”
BOI-registered enterprises with non-pioneer status are exempt from the payment of income tax starting from the scheduled start of commercial operations.
SLTC in March 2019 started the construction of the 66.74-kilometer SLEX Toll Road 4 that would connect Sto. Tomas, Batangas to Lucena City, Quezon.
The toll road will shorten the travel time from Sto. Tomas, Batangas to Barangay Mayao in Lucena City from the usual three hours to just 45 minutes.
The project is expected to be completed in by 2022.
The toll road will be divided into six sections, namely Sto Tomas, Batangas to Makban in Laguna (11.32 km); Makban to San Pablo City (12.75 km); San Pablo to Tiaong in Quezon (7.5 km); Tiaong to Candelaria (15 km); Candelaria to Tayabas (10.21 km); and Tayabas to Lucena (9.96 km).
TR4 is a part of SLTC’s 30-year concession that will last until 2036.
SLTC booked a net income of P1.20 billion in the January-September period last year, down from P2.43 billion it earned in the same period in 2019.
The company’s toll revenue in the first nine months declined 32 percent to P3.18 billion from P4.68 billion following the significant drop in traffic volume in the second quarter.
SLTC has allotted P1.55 billion capital expenditures this year and operating expenditures budget of P5.44 billion.
San Miguel is also in separate talks with the Toll Regulatory Board for the construction of two toll roads worth over P100 billion which would be completed over the next three years.
TRB, in a resolution dated June 29, classified South Luzon Expressway Toll Road 5 and Pasig River Expressway projects as toll roads under the proposal submitted by the joint venture of Philippine National Construction Corp. and San Miguel.
The Department of Public Works and Highways, meanwhile, may pursue the construction of the Quezon-to-Bicol expressway separate from San Miguel’s proposed tollway project.
“We have other options. We can pursue [the project] as GAA [General Appropriations Act] funded project. San Miguel has their own plans for their version of the alignment. It doesn’t necessarily conflict our alignment,” Public Works Secretary Mark Villar said.
“We can do both. It is possible to do both simultaneous, should the need arise. We are looking at involvement as PPP [public private partnership ] or doing some portions from GAA. Nevertheless, it’s a billion-peso but at this point we are flexible. At this point it is ready for execution,” he said.