ILOILO City – The process is moving forward for the Panay-Guimaras-Negros Island Bridges Project, particularly the Panay-Guimaras segment.
National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Region 6 director, Engr. Arecio A. Casing, Jr., said the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH)-central office informed him that the procurement process for creating the detailed engineering design (DED) will be finalized this month.
“We were informed that the procurement process for the DED will be finalized by July…the DPWH-central office will award the contract for the DED this month,” Casing told Panay News.
He explained that once the contract for the DED is awarded, the making of the DED will follow. However, Casing has yet to learn who the winning bidder is.
The making of the DED may take two years to complete, or around 2025. It will cover how the bridge will look, the program of works, the cost, detailed activities, a study to determine the exact geographic or starting point of the project, and the type of soil underwater.
During these two years, Casing expects that experts or engineers from the winning contractor will visit project sites to inspect and check water current and depth, among others.
Casing said the DED is very important because it will be included when the national government starts bidding for interested contractors for the project’s construction.
The DED will also determine the final amount, or contract cost, which will be used by the government to scout potential funders for this project.
“The DED is very important because this will be the basis for the procurement of the contractor. So, this DED will be packaged to be included in the procurement documents for bidding, wherein our government will bid this out, including the DED, to a contractor who’s willing to construct the bridge,” Casing added.
While the DED is also in the works, the national government will take this time to find potential funders for the bridges.
Casing could not provide a projection or estimate of the needed funds for constructing the megaproject bridges, considering the current prices of materials could still change in the coming years.
In the project’s timeline, the construction is estimated to begin in 2025 and is targeted for completion by 2030.
The two bridge segments will be constructed simultaneously.
“It is targeted to start within the term of our current president; he may not reach its completion, but it is assured that it will start during his term,” said Casing.
He believed the national government would conduct international bidding for the mega bridge projects for foreign investors to join, just like the Jalaur River Multi-Purpose Project Stage II in Calinog, Iloilo, being constructed by the Daewoo Engineering & Construction Co. Ltd. from South Korea.
The PGN has two components:
* 13-kilometer Panay-Guimaras bridge, or Section A
* 19.47-kilometer Guimaras-Negros bridge, or Section B
The Panay-Guimaras bridge will have a sea-crossing bridge length of 4.97 kilometers, while the Guimaras-Negros bridge has 13.11 kilometers of sea-crossing bridge length./PN
