- Aboitiz Group expresses interest in taking over Davao International Airport
THE ABOITIZ Group is eyeing the management and operations of the Davao International Airport.
In a statement, Sabin Aboitiz, Aboitiz Equity Ventures, Inc. (AEV) president and chief executive officer, said on a sideline interview at a Cebu Pacific event that the company has been waiting for the government to issue the terms of reference, “as it wants the auction for modernizing and operating Davao International Airport to follow a solicited process.”
“The government said they decided to do it via a solicited (scheme). They are not accepting unsolicited offers now,” Aboitiz said.
This also comes after the infrastructure division of the Aboitiz group, Aboitiz InfraCapital, Inc., recently succeeded in obtaining the contract for Northern Mindanao’s Laguindingan International Airport.
“We are looking into it, depending on the terms. It depends on how it comes out,” Aboitiz added.
Davao City officials and the private sector have long been advocating for the airport to be under a separate management instead of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP).
Presently, CAAP manages 44 commercial airports in the country. However, Ninoy Aquino International Airport, Clark International Airport, Mactan-Cebu International Airport, and Caticlan Airport are managed by separate entities.
In May this year, the 20th City Council passed a resolution urging Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista to turn over management of the Francisco Bangoy International Airport to the Davao International Airport Authority (DIAA).
Under the present setup, the terminal fees collected by the airport are directly remitted to the CAAP.
Meanwhile, CAAP Davao general manager Engr. Rex A. Obcena said they have yet to download the P121 million budget as of May 2024. The budget would have been used to repair the toilets and build of gender-neutral comfort rooms. They would also use the funding for additional manpower and air-conditioning units.
In September, Bautista also noted that a conglomerate showed interest in submitting an unsolicited proposal to manage and operate Davao International Airport. However, he declined to name the company, stating they have yet to receive its formal proposal.
The Department of Transportation rejected the proposal of Chelsea Logistics and Infrastructure Holdings Corp, a company of Davao-based businessman Dennis Uy since Bautista said they intended to make the bidding process solicited. Instead, Uy was asked to revise his proposal.
