The Department of Transportation said Monday it expects the P735-billion New Manila International Airport in Bulacan province to start operations by 2027.
Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista said land development works were being done at the airport’s 1,693-hectare site located 35 kilometers north of Metro Manila.
Works on the NMIA officially started on Sept. 18, 2019 when the government, through the DOTr, signed a concession agreement with San Miguel Aerocity Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of San Miguel Holdings Corp. which is the infrastructure arm of San Miguel Corp.
Bautista assured stakeholders that the new international gateway would soon be open for business. Airport operations are targeted to start in 2027, he said. Once built, the new international airport will be fully owned by the government under a “build-operate-transfer” program.
The new gateway will not only help decongest the Ninoy Aquino International Airport as the capital’s main gateway, but will also be a “game changer” and catalyst of economic growth in Central Luzon, according to the project proponent.
Phase 1 of the airport will have a capacity of 35 million passengers per annum, generate more than a million jobs and rake-in increased foreign direct investments and higher exports.
Under the 50-year concession agreement, SMAI will undertake the financing, design, construction, supply, completion, testing, commissioning and operation and maintenance of the new international gateway.
San Miguel tapped the services of Groupe ADPi, Meinhardt Group and Jacobs Engineering to design and build the New Manila International Airport in Bulakan, Bulacan.
All three companies were involved in building world-class airports including Changi Airport in Singapore, Atlanta Airport in the US and Charles de Gaulle Airport in France.