Alloy MTD offers to build Lerma-UP railway

KUALA LUMPUR – Another unsolicited infrastructure project, a 9.9-kilometer metro rail railway from Lerma to UP worth R60 billion, has been proposed by Malaysian infrastructure firm Alloy MTD Corp. with A Brown Co. Inc.

Patrick Nicholas David, president of MTD PH Inc., said the proposal is now awaiting approval by the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA).

David said NEDA’s approval will grant them the original proponent status on the project.

As an unsolicited proposal, the project will be subjected to a Swiss Challenge after NEDA’s approval.

This unsolicited project, dubbed East West Rail, is expected to ease traffic along this heavily congested area.

The East West Rail, which will serve as MRT 9, will run from Lerma St. in Sampaloc, Manila traversing the España Boulevard to UP in Diliman Quezon City. It will have a total of 11 stations.

According to David, they first submitted the project in 2015, but they resubmitted the proposal in 2016 after making improvements on the engineering designs.

The initial project cost of R50 billion was also updated to R60 billion.

David said they started studying this rail line as early as 2014. They have the technical capability to undertake this big railway project.

The East West Rail is the second unsolicited project of MTD in the Philippines, the first being the 200-hectare National Government Administrative Center in New Clark City. But unlike the Clark project, which they are undertaking on their own, the East West is a consortium with A Brown Co. Inc. Megawide Construction Corp., one of the country’s leading engineering and infrastructure developer, was also reportedly buying into the share of A Brown in the consortium.