Transport dep’t calls for groups to bid for Malolos-Clark railway

THE DEPARTMENT of Transportation is inviting groups to bid for the construction of the Malolos-Clark segment of the P777.55-billion North-South Commuter Railway (NSCR) project.

In a bulletin published in a newspaper on Saturday, the department said it has set the pre-bid conference on March 7 and the deadline for submission and opening of bids on May 10.

The contract consists of three packages: the first one for engineering works of the railway viaduct, four balanced cantilever bridges and two elevated stations; the second for railway viaduct, one extradosed bridge, two balanced cantilever bridges and one elevated station; and the third for railway viaduct, four balanced cantilever bridges and two elevated stations.

Interested parties may procure hard copies of bid documents per package for P50,000.

The train line from Malolos, Bulacan to Clark, Pampanga will be financed by a $2.75-billion loan from the Asian Development Bank (ADB). The open competitive bidding will adhere to ADB’s Procurement Policy, which requires bidders to come from any of ADB’s 67 member countries.

Qualified bidders are likewise required to have an average annual construction turnover of more than $1 billion per package, minimum available financial resources of $60 million per package and submit a bid security of $12 million per package. It must also have completed a project worth more than $500 million in the past 10 years.

The Malolos-Clark railway forms part of the P777.55 billion NSCR project, which consists of the 56-kilometer line from Calamba, Laguna to Tutuban in Manila, the 38-kilometer segment from Tutuban to Malolos, Bulacan and the 53-kilometer portion from Malolos to Clark, Pampanga.

Last year, the DoTr auctioned off the contract for the Malolos-Tutuban line of the NSCR, where Sumitomo Mitsui Construction Co., Ltd. won the contract. It broke ground on Feb. 15. — Denise A. Valdez

https://www.bworldonline.com/transport-dept-calls-for-groups-to-bid-for-malolos-clark-railway/

LRT-1 Cavite extension construction to start April

Construction of the project extending the Light Rail Transit Line 1 (LRT-1) to Cavite is finally pushing through after years of delay, despite the start of the construction officially being moved to the second quarter from the previous target of first quarter.

The Department of Transportation (DOTr) said the project, which will stretch LRT-1 over 33 kilometers from Roosevelt in Quezon City to Niog in Bacoor City is set to start in April.

“Mock up LRV (light rail vehicle) has arrived in the Philippines and it will be unveiled in April, parallel to the start of construction of the LRT Cavite Extension,” the DOTr said.

Light Rail Manila Corp. (LRMC) president and chief executive officer Juan Alfonso earlier indicated plans to move the start of construction of the project to the second quarter.

“A lot of the right of way issues have been resolved, but for example, there are utilities that still need to be relocated, so once those are fairly complete then we can start construction. The right of way is already there, but sometimes it is not free and clear so there are still obstacles that are being fixed right now,” Alfonso said in an interview last December.

The LRT-1 currently has 20 stations spanning from Roosevelt Station in Quezon City to Baclaran Station in Parañaque City.

The LRMC consortium, composed of Metro Pacific Investments Corp.’s Metro Pacific Light Rail Corp., Ayala Corp.’s AC Infrastructure Holdings Corp., and Macquarie Infrastructure Holdings (Philippines) PTE Ltd., also won the contract for the LRT-Cavite extension project which will give rise to eight new stations – Redemptorist, NAIA Avenue, Asia World, Ninoy Aquino and Dr. Santos stations in Parañaque, Las Piñas and Zapote stations in Las Piñas City and Niog station in Bacoor.

Right of way issues have hounded the project in the past, as it was supposed to have been completed by this time based on the original concession agreement in 2014.

The extension project is expected to be completed by the last quarter of 2021 or early 2022.

Once built, travel time from Bacoor to Central Station in Manila will be down to 45 minutes, and to Roosevelt Station in one hour and 10 minutes, even during rush hours.

https://www.philstar.com/business/2019/02/25/1896418/lrt-1-cavite-extension-construction-start-april