CAPITOL READY TO BREAK GROUND FOR P1.3-B PROJECT
Despite the controversies hounding the project, the construction of the Capitol’s P1.3-billion Provincial Resource Center will push through, starting with the groundbreaking on Monday, Feb. 18.
WT Construction Inc. (WTCI), the private contractor that will construct the 20-story facility, has already fenced the old Bureau of Agriculture-Extension (Baex) building that stands on the lot where the resource center will rise.
Gov. Hilario Davide III said the demolition works for the Baex building will start after the groundbreaking ceremony.
Of the P1.9-billion supplemental budget approved by the Provincial Board on June 4, 2018, P1.5 billion was allocated for the construction of the Provincial Resource Center while P600,000 is for the demolition of the Baex building.
Jone Siegfred Sepe, vice chairman of the Provincial Bids and Awards Committee and chief of the Provincial General Services Office, said they will serve the notarized notice to proceed (NTP) to the contractor next week.
“We have asked our legal office to notarize the contract. Once it is notarized maybe (next) Wednesday, we will serve the NTP. After that, we will endorse all the documents to the engineering department as the construction phase starts. The construction phase includes the demolition,” he said.
Sepe said the WTCI has 790 calendar days to construct the resource center.
The Capitol served the notice of award to the private firm last Jan. 30.
Ten days after signing the memorandum of agreement with Davide, WTCI put up a performance bond amounting to P38.8 million, or 30 percent of the bid price it offered.
During the bidding, WTCI posted the lowest bid at P1.298 billion, or P2 million lower than the approved budget contract of P1.3 billion. /