Engineer Eduardo Mangalili (in pink shirt), Project Manager of the new Iloilo Airport Project, briefs members of the Regional Development Council on the facilities of the new Iloilo Airport. (PIA-6, 2007/03/13)

PIA 2007/03/13

Iloilo City (13 March) -- The Iloilo Airport is really intended to serve as catalyst for development, according to Mr. Ed Mangalili, Project Manager of the Iloilo Airport Project who briefed members of the Regional Development Council during their tour of the facilities of the new Airport. Mangalili said the airport would not only spur development around the area but even in the whole of Panay.

The construction of the Iloilo Airport, which is of international standards, came about because the old airport is no longer capable of future air demand, Mangalili said. When completed the Iloilo Airport is a bigger facility than the Silay Airport, Mangalili told the RDC members.

Among others, it boasts of a 2.5 kilometer by 45 meter wide runway which can accommodate Airbus 330 and 340 and Boeing 747 planes, three Passenger Bridges, two baggage claim conveyors, a 500 seating capacity passenger lounge, a three-kilometer access road and nine separate buildings all within the 188 hectare airport complex.

The cost of construction is pegged at P8.758 billion.

So far, Mangalili said, three airline companies have signified their intention to avail of space within the new Airport and are expected to move in within the week to arrange their offices. Spaces within the airport are also open to concessionaires.

The completed airport facilities will be formally turned over to the Air Transportation office on March 19 and it will now be the ATO who will manage the facilities according to Mr. Alan Java, ATO Area Manager. The tentative schedule for the Airport inauguration is on April 12, 2007.

Meanwhile to enhance the competitive advantages of the country's five super regions, the government is set to complete this year, aside from the Iloilo Airport, seven other airport projects that would further promote tourism and logistics by providing a more efficient mode of transport for goods and passengers. The eight airport projects are part of the 31 priority airport projects costing P94.37 billion targeted to be completed by 1022 under the Medium Term Public Investment Program (MTPIP). (PIA 6)

PIA 2006/07/12
by PIA Iloilo

Iloilo City (12 July) -- Visiting Philippine Information Agency (PIA) Deputy Director-General Leon Omoso was given today a tour of ongoing civil works for the new international airport here in Cabatuan district. He was briefed by Engr. Manuel Lauden, DOTC Deputy Project Manager.

Iloilo Airport Of International Standards

Philippine Information Agency Deputy Director-General Leo Omoso listens to Engr. Manuel Lauden, DOTC Deputy Project Manager for NIADP, as the latter explains the work going on and overall status of the project. In Photo are PIA - AMO 6 operations in-charge Nena Magalona and Phil-JAC Deputy project manager Engr. Celso de la Cruz and another deputy project manager. (PIA 6)

Iloilo's Pride

Workers continue to do finishing work on the runway of Iloilo's Airport of International Standards in Cabatuan, Iloilo. According to the DOTC project managers and consultants, the airport is expected to test the equipment and facilities before the year ends. (PIA 6)

Work at the control tower and the passengers' terminal continues at the New Iloilo Airport Development Project (NIADP), as the Department of Transportation and Communication expects the facilities and equipment to be tested before end of this year. (PIA 6)

PIA 2008/04/21

Iloilo City (21 April) -- Presidential Management Staff Chief Cerge Remonde said some P29.1 billion has been allocated by the national government for infrastructure projects for Western Visayas aimed to boost farm production and transport.

Remonde, during the recent awarding ceremonies of the Best Public Sector Projects in Western Visayas held in this city, said these projects included two major roads, four airports, one roro port, one flood control and three power electrification projects.

Two of the four airports, said Remonde have already been completed. These are the New Iloilo Airport in Cabatuan, Iloilo and the Bacolod-Silay Airport in Bacolod City.

"Except for the flood control projects, all these are to be completed by 2010", said Remonde.

Earlier this year, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo has ordered a "surge in infrastructure spending" as a springboard for further economic growth

Remonde added that infrastructure programs make possible the seamless movement of farm products to markets, of passengers from destination to destination.

In line with this, he cited the importance of the Rehabilitation of the Aganan River Irrigation System and Enhancement of Agricultural Support Service projects of the National Irrigation Administration VI (NIA VI) in Iloilo to bolster food production.

The said project of NIA was among the winning projects included in the Best Public Sector Projects for 2006-2007. It won 2nd place in the Regional Line Agencies category. (PIA)

6/8/2007 - CABINET Secretary Ricardo Saludo stresses that the New Iloilo Airport of international standard in Cabatuan, Iloilo is one of the 14 airports projects of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo's Central Philippines Super Region program which is expected to boost tourism industry in this part of the country during a recent multi-sectoral dialogue dubbed "Building the New Philippines" here in Iloilo City. President Arroyo is expected to lead national and local officials during the inauguration of the New Iloilo Airport set on June 13. (PIA 6)

OPS 13 March 2007

LAST week at the Presidential Management Staff briefing of the Malacañang Press Corps, we drew the network of RoRo ports that constitute the backbone of our Strong Republic Nautical Highway. Connecting sea lanes and land routes, and building efficient ports for the rapid transit of cargo and passengers, the Nautical Highway has cut travel time from Manila to Mindanao by as much as 10 hours. And transport cost was cut by 40% for passengers and 30% for cargo.

Gains in travel time and savings in transport cost are the most immediate gains to be enjoyed from this infrastructure investment of R23.5 billion, a small dividend from the social payback that Pres. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo is vigorously pushing.

Yesterday, our regular Malacañang Press Corps briefing took wing, in a manner of speaking, as we highlighted 31 priority airport projects being built, improved or rehabilitated, at a cost close of P95 billion.

For the year 2007, an initial eight airports will be completed, costing R15.51 billion, with the Casiguran (Aurora), Kalibo, New Iloilo, and Ozamis airports to be finished during the first semester, and the other four before the year ends. Twenty others will be completed before the end of 2010 and three more by 2011.

At the Diosdado Macapagal International Airport (DMIA), the Radar Approach Control will be finished this month, while the Passenger Terminal expansion project is for completion by December 2007. Passenger traffic at DMIA has increased exponentially since 2003, growing at a dizzying rate of 5,800%, from 7,880 passengers in 2003 to 470,867 by 2006. The DMIA is being developed at a total cost of R57 billion, with full completion targeted in 2011.

Under the New Iloilo Airport Development Project, a 188-hectare site in Cabatuan will replace the one at Manduriao, also in Iloilo City. Built at a cost of R8.7 billion, it generated some 2,600 jobs during construction, with 500 job openings targeted for the airport’s regular operations. Meantime, the existing Iloilo Domestic Airport will be converted into a commercial center. The new airport will be operational next month, in April.

The Kalibo Airport in Aklan, meanwhile, is set to go international this month, with direct flights from Korea set to make their inaugural run. According to Rep. Florencio T. Miraflores of the Lone District of Aklan, who worked for the upgrade of the Kalibo airport to bring it to international rating, some Korean tourists would rather go straight to Boracay, then stopover at Manila.

And speaking of Boracay, the Caticlan airport is now one of the busiest. The area is so busy that a Build Operate Transfer (BOT) airport project on Carabao Island, a short hop from Boracay itself, is being proposed by Boracay Holdings. Business at Boracay must be booming these days, with expanded access via the Nautical Highway and the airports.

As part of the priority infrastructure projects for the Superregions, the airport projects aim to promote the development themes of each of the Superregions. For Central Philippines, 16 airport projects are being improved or constructed as part of the intra-regional and extra-regional transport system that will make the many islands and islets of Central Philippines and its key tourist destinations such as Bicol, Palawan, Bacolod, Iloilo, and Boracay more accessible.

The six airport projects in the North Luzon Agribusiness Quadrangle and the seven in the Mindanao Superregion will contribute to the improvement of the transport of agricultural products as well as provide access to key tourist destinations, while the two airports in the Luzon Urban Beltway, will contribute to the seamless movement of services and people in the industrial and services hubs.

Both as an investment and vital infrastructure, airport development is but one of the strategies of the Arroyo administration to spur economic activity. It is part of the aggressive infrastructure development package that the administration is pursuing, a package that also includes the development of seaports, farm-to-market roads, among others.

On the back of these infrastructure development projects rest the ambitious development targets of the administration, to attain a gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate of 7% in 2007, 8% in 2008 and 9% by 2009, under the 789 economic development plan.

On the very short term, the President sees the completion of some of these infrastructure projects resulting in greater investments, even as it gives further impetus to the President’s 8 by ‘08 agenda, which includes the generation of more jobs, the lowering of the cost of living, the further strengthening of the peso, implementation of more pro-poor programs, in the areas of education, healthcare, housing and food, the Green Philippines and a country made more secure against the threat of terrorist assaults.

These goals are within reach in time. More to the point, these are goals that can be achieved faster with the cooperation of all sectors.

Once cooperation and unity are in place, it may be safe to say that the "ship of state" has taken wing, and is well on its way towards its destination of becoming a first world country by 2020.

PIA 2006/07/13, by ES Subong

Cabatuan, Iloilo (13 July) -- Engr. Manuel Lauden, Deputy Project Manager for the New Iloilo Airport Development Project (NIADP) and Engr. Celso de la Cruz, Deputy Project Manager for Phil-Japan Airport Consultants, Inc. said three-fourths of the civil works, building works, utility works and other types of works at the site of the Iloilo Airport of international standards are already undertaken to date.

In an on-site briefing with Deputy Director General Leo Omoso of the Philippine Information Agency (PIA), and Mrs Nena S. Magalona, PIA-AMO 6 Operations In-charge, Engr. Lauden said that the new Iloilo airport is comparatively the best and the earliest ever constructed outside of Metro Manila.

Engr. Lauden added that the new airport is the first to have modern, latest technology belonging to Category F as determined by the International Civil Aviation (ICA) Organization. This means the new Iloilo airport is accredited as a qualifier for international standards.

Meanwhile, Engr. De la Cruz said that almost all equipment and facilities are already on hand, some were installed for commissioning before the year ends. These equipment and facilities will be tested starting December, while the buildings are undergoing rigid finishing touches, which takes quite sometime, to ensure quality.

He said work continues without delay, except for constraints like the bad weather condition and some social aspects of operation, the latter, relatively manageable.

The on-site briefing included an ocular view of the facilities and features of the airport complex.

The three-storey passenger terminal, about 12, 000 sq. meter in floor area, houses the baggage conveyor on the first floor, the check in area and the airline offices on the second floor and the pre-departure area on the third, and the arrival area along the corridors that lead to the first floor. The airport apron can accommodate six aircrafts simultaneously parking at a time.

Other features besides the standard civil works and building works are the air navigation systems, that include a radar area which can easily determine the condition of flying aircrafts, including those in distress.

The complex has a six-hectare regulating pond, bigger than the Burnham Park in Baguio, that can hold even a year's continuous downpour, hence, not flood the airport runway. Engr. Lauden said the water passes through a treatment plant, which can augur well for the area to become a livelihood center. The water in the pond will also be pumped out for irrigation purposes.

On the other hand, PIA Deputy Director General Leo Omoso said that it is President Gloria Arroyo's prime concern that the Central Philippines, which includes Western Visayas, become a leading mega region as far as tourism, investments and technology are concerned.

"The new Iloilo airport when it becomes fully operational, is the key to many great opportunities for unprecedented growth in Iloilo," Omoso said. Iloilo Governor Niel Tupas, Sr. said that the construction of the new Iloilo airport will see to the development of an expanded livelihood source other than farming for many people.

Further, Tupas said, it will greatly promote tourism and investments, and also bring about social benefits and uplift the dignity and pride of the Ilonggos for the prestige the Iloilo airport of international standards will bring.

The implementation of the NIADP is spearheaded by the Department of Transportation and Communication, whose strategy of developing the Iloilo Airport has become a national development thrust. (PIA 6)

OPS 29 JANUARY 2006

ILOILO CITY – President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo said last night that the government will pursue the privatization of the Mandurriao Iloilo Airport here to generate funds for major development projects in Iloilo and the whole Panay Island.

"To make sure that we are able to have the funds for the budget cover, and to pay the loans and for all the other developments here in Iloilo City, and the approach to the airport, and to make Panay truly a tourism destination, easy to travel, I have instructed that we privatize the Mandurriao Iloilo Airport," the President said.

She said funds raised through the privatization of the air terminal will be used to finance tourism-related development projects in Iloilo City, as well as the other parts of Iloilo province, and the whole Panay Island.

The Chief Executive made the announcement during the dinner with local government officials and businessmen led by Iloilo City Mayor Jerry Trenas at at the Tatoy’s Manokan convention hall.

During a visit here in April 2005, the President directed the Department of Finance (DOF) to begin the process of privatizing the Iloilo Airport in Mandurriao.

She said the proceeds of the privatization would be used to pay the P6.2-billion loan from Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) for the construction of the new Iloilo International Airport in the Sta. Barbara-Cabatuan area.

The President said part of the proceeds of the airport privatization would be used to finance the construction of a first-class highway interconnecting the provinces of Iloilo, Capiz, and Antique up to Caticlan, Aklan the gateway to the world-famous tourism destination -- Boracay Island.

At the dinner, the President said she is happy to know that construction of the Iloilo City flood control project, one of the most important flagship projects in Iloilo, would commence in March.

"Some of the most important flagship projects in Iloilo, the flood control project almost disappeared from the ODA (Official Development Assistance package). I am happy to hear from Jerry (Mayor Trenas) that in March it’s (flood control project) going to start on the ground. So, we can start working on that. Because the flood control is going to start in March, now we can work on the next one, which is the privatization of the airport," she said.

The President also thanked the city council and local business community for their continuing support for her administration.

"Thank you for this petition expressing support, trust and confidence in my administration. To the officials of Iloilo City and the business community of Iloilo City, thank you very much for your support," she said.

MALACAÑANG Manila BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE PHILIPINES EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 360 AMENDING EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 282, SERIES OF 2004, WHICH DIRECTED THE ESTABLISHMENT OF AN ASSET DISPOSITION PROGRAM FOR THE EXISTING ILOILO AIRPORT WHEREAS, the new Iloilo Airport Development Project ("Project"), funded with a loan from the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC), is now undergoing construction in the Municipalities of Sta. Barbara and Cabatuan, Province of Iloilo, which when completed, will replace the existing Iloilo airport in Mandurriao, Iloilo City; WHEREAS, the government deems it beneficial to consider and evaluate alternatives on the disposition of the existing airport/site to achieve its optimum value; WHEREAS, the development of the existing airport/site is curicial to the economic development of the Province and City of Iloilo, as well as the viability of the Project; WHEREAS, Executive Order No. 282 was issued last February 17, 2004 creating an Asset Disposition Program (ADP) for the existing Ilioilo Airport, which ADP will be managed by an inter-agency t ask force; NOW THEREFORE, I, GLORIA MACAPAGAL-ARROYO, President of the Republic of the Philippines, by virtue of the powers vested in me by law, do herby order: Section 1. Section 1 of Executive Order No. 282 is hereby amended to read as follows: "Section 1. Establishment of Asset Disposition Program (ADP) – There is hereby created an Asset Disposition Program (ADP) to consider and evaluate alternatives on the disposition of the existing airport/site to achieve its optimum value. Such program shall be managed by the Department of Finance (DOF). Section 2. Section 3 of Executive Order No. 282 is hereby amended to read as follows: "Section 3. Function and authority of the ADP. The ADP shall study and evaluate the plan of action and handle the process for the sale or disposition of the existing Iloiolo Aiproort. For this purpose, the ADP under the DOF is empowered to secure the services of competent third-party advisors (s) who can provider advice on the conceptualization and implementation of the ADP." Section 3. Effectivity – This Executive Order shall take effect immediately. Done in the City of Manila, this 22nd day of September in the year of Our Lord, Two Thousand and Four. (Sgd.) GLORIA MACAPAGAL-ARROYO By the President: (Sgd.) EDUARDO R. ERMITA Executive Secretary

PIA 2004/01/27, by E.S. Subong

Cabatuan, Iloilo (27 Jan) -- The fate of the new Iloilo Airport Development Project was sealed towards fulfillment when Transportation and Communications Secretary Leandro Mendoza declared that “all systems go” for the project.

Secretary Mendoza said that with the approval of the budget amounting to about 6.2 billion pesos, the New Iloilo Airport Development Project (NIADP) swings fast to address the problems that the existing airport is facing.

He noted that based on an overall review on the sustainability of the existing airport and the latest traffic forecast and requirements of the Philippine Airlines intending to operate A330 aircraft at Iloilo Airport, the existing airport is no longer capable of responding to future requirements, particularly transportation safety and convenience.

Among the 86 national government airports, the Iloilo Airport is the fourth busiest in the country in terms of the number of passenger traffic next to NAIA, Mactan and Davao International Airports.

The Iloilo airport caters to the increasing number of air passengers and cargo traffic not only in the provice from including the provinces of Aklan, Guimaras, Capiz, Antique and even Negros Occidental.

In 1997, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) conducted a study on Selected Airports Master Planning Project and formulated the long-term development requirements for four trunk line airports, which included Iloilo, Bacolod, Tacloban and Legaspi.

JICA recommended that site selection study be undertaken. A Pre-feasibility Study complemented JICA’s, wherein the urgent need for the development of the New Iloilo Airport was confirmed.

Mendoza further explained that the development project is quite drastic with the inevitable need for a magnitude of land acquisition and resettlement.

Basing on the studies conducted and several consultations made, the project proponents identified the site of the new airport to be within the 10 barangays of the municipalities of Sta. Barbara and Cabatuan, with a total of 188 hectares.

In 1999, the Philippine government decided to develop a new airport complex of international standards with the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) as the lead agency.

Through the DOTC, the government requested the government of Japan to extend financial assistance under the special Yen Loan Package of the Japan for International Cooperation (JBIC).

In March 200, NEDA approved the project in the amount of Php 6.187 billion, about Php .928 billion of which involves the government counterpart.

The scope of work includes the 2,500 m x 45 meters runway, 48,000 sq. meters apron, 3,000 m x 30 meters access road, passenger terminal which is about 12,000 square meters, cargo terminal building, administration building, 35 meters high tower and operation building, central plant building, maintenance building and equipment, crash-fire-rescue station and equipment, and many others.

The Iloilo airport project is expected to be finished in 42 months, or about three years and a half. (PIA)

OPS January 26, 2004

Cabatuan, Iloilo – The Department of Transportation and Communication (DOTC) has assured President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and residents of Iloilo that implementation of the P6.2 billion new airport project here will be free from graft and corruption.

DOTC Secretary Leandro Mendoza made the assurance in response to questions by local media during a press conference held Sunday night at Model Senior Citizens Center here.

"Well, there are some insinuations (of irregularity in the bidding), but I would like to assure you that the process we undertook was very transparent. It was devoid of any irregularity and it was above board," Mendoza said.

Mendoza said that the oversight committee and the steering committee, chaired by Senate President Franklin Drilon, can testify that there was no irregularity in the bidding process for the new airport.

Aside from Drilon, members of the committee included Iloilo Governor Neil D. Tupas, Jr., Congressmen Arthur Defensor of the 3rd District and Augusto Syjuco of the 2nd District, and the mayors of Cabatuan and Sta. Barbara, the host municipalities.

"Of course, kung meron mang napakainteresado dito sa project ay si Senate President Drilon, to see to it that this project is not only pursued and completed but also not tainted by corruption," Mendoza added.

For his part, Drilon explained that if the alleged irregularity had any basis, a complainant should come out by now, particularly from the ranks of landowners of the 186-hectare airport site.

"It (project) covers 186 hectares, and yet not a single landowner has ever complained that some individuals made money. We purchased 186 hectares," Drilon said.

He also assured the people of Iloilo that he will not allow the airport project to be tainted with corruption.

"I will not allow this project under the leadership of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to be tainted with corruption. That, I can assure you and that is the instruction of the President," he added.

OPS January 25, 2004

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and Acting Secretary Florante Soriquez of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) launch in Iloilo City this evening a DPWH program, called "Kalsada Natin, Alagaan Natin," that is expected to provide jobs to barangay residents and prolong the service life of national roads in the Visayan region.

The President flew to Iloilo City from Villamor Airbase, in Pasay City, this morning with Soriquez and other senior government officials.

Implementation of the Kalsada program, which started in Luzon last October, is to be inaugurated, together with the new Iloilo Airport Development Project, at the Cabatuan Gymnasium in Cabatuan, Iloilo. It jibes with the President’s employment-generation agenda calling for, among other things, the tapping and harnessing of barangay manpower in roadside maintenance activities.

Soriguez said that the program involves routine maintenance of road shoulders, drainage lines and canals as well as vegetation control activities along 7,117 kilometers of national roads in the Visayas.

"This translates to employment opportunities for 28,468 residents from the 3,857 barangays traversed by national roads," he added. In Luzon, the number of workers hired under the program totaled 60,372.

Soriquez, who chairs the Special Funds of the Road Board, said that the empowerment of barangay residents in the upkeep and beautification of the roadsides "will provide employment opportunities and at the same time prolong the service life of our roads."

The program is being undertaken in close coordination with concerned local government units and congressmen, he said.

OPS January 25, 2004

ILOILO CITY — President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, who has just recovered from cold and fever, arrived here this afternoon to inaugurate power, airport and road projects that are expected to make substantial contribution to the economic development not only of this province but also Antique, Aklan, Capiz, Guimaras and Negros Occidental.

The President received a festive airport welcome, highlighted by a cultural performance by the Dinagyang dancers. Iloilo Gov. Neil Tupas, Iloilo City Mayor Jerry Trenas and Congressmen Raul Gonzales, Cesar Garin, Augusto Syjuco, Arthur Defensor and Narciso Monfort were among the officials who greeted her at the airport.

Before flying to Iloilo, Mrs. Macapagal-Arroyo attended a thanksgiving mass, offered on the occasion of former President Corazon C. Aquino’s 71st birthday, at the St. Joseph Convent of Perpetual Adoration in Quezon City.

Following the airport welcome, the President is motoring to Barangay Ignore, La Paz town, for the ceremonial switch-on of the 114 megawatt Panay Power Plant.

She is to motor again to Cabatuan town for the launching of the P6.2 billion New Iloilo Airport Development Project, along with the Pototan-Mina-Janiuay Road and Sara-Calinog (Iloilo)-Bugasong (Antique) boundary road projects.

Of the 86 national airports throughout the country, Iloilo airport is the fourth busiest in terms of passenger traffic, next to Ninoy Aquino International Airport, Mactan and Davao international airports.

The existing Iloilo Airport has obsolete facilities, apart from operational limitations due to obstacles and limited expandability on account of the existence of roads, rivers and squatter colonies.

The Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) and the government of Japan have commissioned a comprehensive study by Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) for the 188-hectare New Iloilo Airport in Cabatuan.

The project was financed through assistance provided under the special loan package of the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC).

The project was designed to meet the increasing air passenger and cargo traffic in Iloilo as well as to boost the economic development of the Visayan region. It also addresses the need for improving air transport safety in compliance with the international standards.

The Pototan-Mina-Janiuay road is a national secondary artery with a length of 16.8 kilometers and links the municipalities of Janiuay, Mina and Pototan at the central portion of Panay Island.

The improvement of the road will greatly contribute to the continuing expansion of agriculture that plays a major role in the growth and stability of the economy of Iloilo.

The 6.2-kilometer Sara-Calinog (Iloilo)-Bugasong (Antique) road serves as a shorter alternate route from the central to the northern part of Iloilo. It is also a vital route during the milling season.