New Bohol Airport works to start in May
TAGBILARAN CITY — Japan’s engineering giants, Chiyoda and Mitsubishi, as joint contractors, have announced that the actual civil works on the New Bohol Airport in Panglao will start in May with the expected completion of the project in 2017.
Mitsubishi-Chiyoda Joint Venture issued this final timeframe during the first stakeholders’ coordination meeting last week presided by Governor Edgar Chatto, in the presence of Cielo de Eulin, director for project management services of the Department of Transportation and Communications.
DOTC Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya sent Eulin to the meeting, which was also attended by Representative Rene Relampagos (1st district, Bohol), representatives of Japan Airport Consultant, officials of the Local Project Management Team, the Bohol Water Utilities Incorporated and the Bohol Electric Cooperative, and Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Officer Nestor Canda.
Canda, who also helped in finalizing the details of the preparation, said he made sure there will be no harmful impact on the environment during the implementation and operation of the New Bohol Airport.
Mitsubishi-Chiyoda and its subcontractor, EEI Corporation, had been processing the permits and clearances to be able to proceed with the civil works in May.
The new airport was designed as an ecology-friendly facility, with a modern terminal of international standards that can accommodate one million passengers every year.
During the meeting, officials of the contractor explained that the airport will have special equipment in place, with advanced Japanese technology to equip it with photovoltaic power generation system and a filtering system “to avoid polluting the surrounding environment by drainage during construction.”
Once completed, DOTC will bid out the terms on the operation and maintenance of the New Bohol Airport. The provincial government also stated that locals will be employed here, environmental impact will be monitored and traffic management will be undertaken.
The local government units of Panglao and Dauis towns also assured authorities to help provide a stable supply of water and power during the construction period onward until the operation of the airport.
Transportation of construction materials from Tagbilaran port to the site was also tackled in the meeting, as it will involve 240,000 metric tons of sand and gravel, the volume of which will increase when works intensify by July.
Representatives of the Philippine Ports Authority, the Department of Public Works and Highways and the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines discussed that the shipment of the materials might require an alternate or temporary berthing pads for sets of heavy equipment and the volume of construction materials.
Chatto and Relampagos, as agreed by Canda, suggested that it must be located outside Panglao island, with the port in Alburquerque town deemed a potential berthing pad.