MVP firm to conduct third bridge study

A subsidiary of a consortium headed by business tycoon Manuel V. Pangilinan will conduct a feasibility study for a third bridge that will link mainland Cebu to Mactan island, Cebu Gov. Hilario Davide III said yesterday.

Davide said the Capitol and Cordova town will sign an agreement with Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. (MPTC) for the study after a resolution for this purpose was approved by the Cebu Provincial Board (PB) in last Monday’s session.

Company representatives visited the governor’s office last month.

“It was informal. They asked if they could conduct a feasibility study at no cost to the province,” he told reporters yesterday.

No date has been set yet for the signing of the agreement with MPTC.

In the resolution sponsored by PB Member Grecilda Sanchez, MPTC represented by its CEO Ramoncito Fernandez will shoulder the cost of the feasibility study of the bridge project.

The six-month study will cover the bridge’s “design, construction, implementation, operation and maintenance.”

Davide said the proposed bridge will be located south of the existing Mactan Bridge.

The study will also include information on the main bridge structure, viaduct, causeway and support arterial roads.

The province and Cordova town will provide data for the project.

The feasibility study is important as basis for cost estimates and to attract the interest of investors.

“Usually feasibility studies take long, usually from six months to a year. It’s a huge project if ever it pushes through. It will depend on their study,” Davide said.

The design was first presented by architect Joseph Michael Espina, a core group member of the Movement for a Livable Cebu. No funding agency has been identified yet.

“It was like an unsolicited proposal. We in the provincial government are considering if a bridge should be made,” Davide said. Correspondent Peter L.Romanillos