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Japanese contractors hesitant on SCTEx interchange

By Russell Arador, Tonette Orejas
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 02:14:00 05/11/2008

CITY OF SAN FERNANDO -- Just when the government has settled everything, location and funding especially, a Japanese contractor of the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway has become “somewhat hesitant” to build two interchanges on the Pampanga side of the country’s newest toll road.

“We are still negotiating with Kajima [Kajima-Obayashi-JFE Engineering and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. Joint Venture]. It is somewhat hesitant,” Narciso Abaya, president and chief executive officer of the Bases Conversion and Development Authority, told the Inquirer.

Abaya gave the latest updates on the planned Porac and Floridablanca interchanges in a phone interview on Saturday.

He could not tell why KOJM was indecisive at this point.

The venture built the 50.5-km Subic-Clark segment of the 94-km SCTEx. The Subic-Clark portion was opened on April 29.

The cautiousness of KOJM came five months after President Macapagal-Arroyo addressed the clamor of local officials and the Advocacy for the Development of Central Luzon for four interchanges. What Ms Arroyo did, on the suggestion of Pampanga Rep. Carmelo Lazatin, was restore the project’s original design of having four interchanges on the Pampanga section.

These were scrapped in 2005 due to budget constraints but were later found to be necessary to connect Pampanga’s industries and commerce to the Clark and Subic freeports.

The BCDA had obtained a supplemental loan of 17 million yen (P6 billion) from the Japan Bank for International Cooperation in March to cover the costs of the four interchanges, shortfall of the original cost and price escalations.

While the Porac and Floridablanca interchanges are awaiting construction, the Clark South and Clark North interchanges and Panday Pira access road to Clark are underway, Abaya said.

“In case (KOJM) refuses, the BCDA will invoke a provision in the contract that says the contractor cannot refuse variation orders,” Abaya said.

“We are confident that Kajima is a reputable company and it will not renege on its obligations,” Abaya said.

Masato Otsubo, KOJM general manager, denied that the joint venture was having second thoughts in doing the variation orders.

“It is not true. Kajima always wants to cooperate with BCDA,” he told the Inquirer.

However, Otsubo clarified that discussions were ongoing. “Hopefully, we can reach the conclusion as soon as possible.”

A 32-km stretch in the 43.27-km Clark-Tarlac segment has yet to be opened to motorists. Much of these are in Concepcion town.

Abaya said the segment could not be opened because a contractor of the BCDA was still building the remaining four overpasses there. Four others have been completed, he said.

The National Transmission Corp. was also installing its facilities along the same stretch to serve the needs of Texas Instruments that is based in Clark, he said.

The failure of the BCDA to finish the overpasses had prompted the Concepcion government to sue the BCDA.

On April 25, Concepcion Mayor Noel Villanueva, with authorization from the local council, petitioned the regional trial court in Capas town to issue a writ of preliminary injunction to stop the commercial opening of the Concepcion portions of SCTEx until BCDA “has complied with its obligations/commitments under the (December 2005) memorandum of agreement.”

Villanueva said the town government was forced to go to court because the BCDA had never lived up to its commitments to finish the overpasses and access roads.

During a hearing held April 29 at the Capas RTC and presided by Judge Alipio Yumul, BCDA lawyers Mervin Rostrata and Arnel Casanova admitted there was a delay in the completion of the overpass projects.

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