DOTC to formalize Trinoma as MRT-LRT common station (By Lawrence Agcaoili, The Philippine Star)

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) is set to formalize the location of the common station for the Metro Rail Transit line 3 (MRT-3) and Light Rail Transit line 1 (LRT-1) at the Trinoma Mall in Quezon City.

DOTC undersecretary Rene Limcaoco said the agency would issue a bid bulletin naming the Trinoma Mall owned by property giant Ayala Land Inc. as the site of the proposed P1.4 billion common station.

“We’re going to announce it in an special bid bulletin, but it’s most probably in Trinoma,” Limcaoco said.

Earlier, Transportation Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya said the government could save as much as P1 billion if the MRT-LRT common station is constructed near the Trinoma Mall instead of the earlier planned SM City North Edsa.

“Primarily, the cost, it’s a billion less,” Limcaoco replied when asked why the agency picked the Trinoma Mall over the SM City North Edsa.

It would be recalled that the DOTC originally picked SM North Edsa as the site of the proposed common station but later revised the plan and transferred the site near Trinoma.

Mall giant SM Prime Holdings Inc. of retail magnate Henry Sy already paid P200 million to state-run Light Rail Transit Authority (LRTA) for the naming rights of the common station.

SM Prime could keep its naming rights despite the transfer of the station to Trinoma.

The DOTC is looking at completing the bidding and awarding of the contract for the project within the first half of the year so that construction would start in the third quarter.

The DOTC hopes to complete the proposed common station by the third quarter of 2015.

The project would involve a turn-back system between the SM City North Edsa and Trinoma malls to serve as an area where trains would maneuver to change directions.

The station would serve as a common platform to interconnect LRT1 that runs from Baclaran to Roosevelt, the MRT 3 that traverses EDSA from North Avenue in Quezon City to Taft Avenue in Pasay City, and the proposed MRT 7 of diversified conglomerate San Miguel Corporation that would run from Caloocan City and pass through Lagro and Fairview, Novaliches, Batasan, Diliman, Philcoa, before ending at Edsa near SM City North EDSA.

The proposed common station was one of the seven major infrastructure projects worth P184.2 billion approved by the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Board chair by President Aquino last November 21.

SMC boosts infra portfolio

 Diversified conglomerate San Miguel Corporation (SMC) is boosting its infrastructure portfolio in the next few years with the completion of major railway, airport and tollroad projects.

The P62.7-billion Metro Rail Transit Line 7 (MRT-7) will be completed in 2018, coming on the heels of the completion of the Boracay Airport in 2016 and the Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway (TPLEx) in December 2015.

“MRT-7 project has successfully secured necessary government approval to proceed with construction,” SMC said in a disclosure to the stock exchange.

It awarded the engineering procurement contract to Japanese firm Marubeni Corp.

SMC said it is still waiting for the release of the performance undertaking, a government guarantee stating that the state agency involved in a project will comply with all its obligations to the contractor.

Processing of the financial closure can be completed this year, SMC said.

“Construction of the 44-kilometer road and rail transportation will begin immediately after this, and will take an estimated 42 months to complete,” SMC said.

In 2010, SMC acquired a 51-percent stake in Universal LRT Corp. that holds the build-operate-transfer concession for MRT-7, is one of several rail extension projects to the existing metro rail system that services Metro Manila.

It includes a 22-km, six-lane asphalt highway that will connect the North Luzon Expressway to the intermodal transport terminal in San Jose del Monte City, Bulacan and a 22-km mostly elevated MRT with 14 stations that will start from San Jose del Monte City and end at the integrated railway station at North EDSA.

Other infrastructure projects are also underway.

SMC said the P24-billion, 88.85-km TPLEx will be fully completed by 2015, three years ahead of the 2018 schedule.

“The upgrade of the Boracay Airport is also ongoing,” SMC said, adding that it plans to start construction of a runway this year and the project in 2016.

In 2007, SMC started selling parts of key businesses to fund diversification from the mature food and beverage businesses into high-growth and capital-intensive sectors such as power generation, mining, infrastructure and telecommunications.