San Miguel bags Cavite-Batangas Expressway project

San Miguel Holdings Corp. (SMHC) has been awarded the P27 billion Cavite-Batangas Expressway (CBEx) project.

San Miguel Corp. (SMC) confirmed in a regulatory disclosure that the Cavite provincial government and SMHC signed on February 7 the joint-venture agreement as well as tollway concession agreement to implement CBEx. SMHC is the holding company of conglomerate SMC.

The project is eyed for completion in two and a half years, with right-of-way clearing activities seen to start in June, according to Cavite Governor Juanito Victor “Jonvic” Remulla.

For its first three years of operations, CBEx is expected to serve an estimated 40,000 motorists daily, he added.

The project will be implemented at no cost to the Cavite provincial government for a concession period of 35 years.

The awarding comes after no competitive proposal for the project was received by the Cavite provincial government.

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SMHC was awarded in June 2022 the original proponent status for its unsolicited proposal to build and operate CBEx. Following this, detailed negotiations ensued and the parties reached a successful conclusion in September 2022.

The Cavite provincial government then proceeded in October 2022 with a competitive selection process, mandatory under the province’s public-private partnership code, to solicit comparative proposals from other potential proponents as counterbids to SMHC’s unsolicited proposal.

The Cavite provincial government moved the deadline for submission of competitive proposals from December to January, but on January 23 said it had not received proposals for the project.

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The CBEx project involves the construction, financing, operation and maintenance of a 27.06-kilometer toll road traversing the municipalities of Silang, Amadeo, City of Tagaytay, lndang, Mendez and Alfonso in Cavite and Nasugbu, Batangas.

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The project aims to improve connectivity between the National Capital Region and CALABARZON, and enhance the mobility of people and goods in the area. It is also seen to mitigate road congestion in CALABARZON.