The Philippine government still plans to develop Davao-Sasa port in the southern region but at a much lower project cost and no longer under the public-private partnership scheme (PPP), Transportation Undersecretary for Maritime Felipe Judan said.
Judan said the National Economic and Development Authority-Investment Coordination Committee-Cabinet Committee had earlier approved the request to drop the previous P19.7-billion project in favor of pursuing the port’s modernization based on an earlier Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) feasibility study.
PPA earlier said it preferred the 2012 feasibility study on the Davao-Sasa port modernization, which pegs the development cost at only around P5 billion. Judan noted, however, that project cost could now be P6 billion to P7 billion, which is still lower than the previous P19.7-billion project cost.
In 2015, the Department of Transportation and Communications, precursor to DOTr, began bidding proceedings for the P19.7-billion modernization of Davao-Sasa port under the PPP scheme.
Judan said the P19.7-billion project was not feasible because it required an output of 1.2 million to 1.3 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) per year when the port is currently only handling 250,000 to 300,000 TEUs annually. He also observed the competition posed by other private ports servicing the region.
The project is now undergoing a revalidating feasibility study and detailed engineering and design, Judan said, adding that he had instructed PPA to “make it soon.”
On project funding, Judan said it could be through PPA’s corporate fund or under official development assistance.
The undersecretary also mentioned a recent talk with a Japanese company that offered to develop the port into a “green port” using a grant from Japan. PPA recently said it was adopting the “Green Port” project as it gears up to use sustainable energy in all aspects of its operations. The project is part of the agency’s 25-year roadmap.
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