MPTC's P2.5-B CAVITEX buyout offer 'disadvantageous' to gov't — PEATC

Public Estates Authority Tollways Corp. (PEATC), a state-run firm attached under the Philippine Reclamation Authority (PRA), is opposing Metro Pacific Tollways Corp.'s (MPTC) offer to buy out the government from the joint venture handling the Manila-Cavite Expressway (CAVITEX).

At a press conference in Quezon City, PEATC officer-in-charge Dioscoro Esteban Jr. said it would be illogical for the government to sell out its stake in CAVITEX for P2.5 billion as the toll road is estimated to be earning over P2 billion a year.

"Siguro naman hindi ganoon kabobo ang gobyerno para ibenta nang P2.5 billion ang kumikita ng [higit] P2 billion taun-taon (I don't think the government is that stupid to sell it at P2.5 billion when it earns more than P2 billion a year)," Esteban said.

The PEATC has filed a petition for mandamus before the Court of Appeals to regain its mandate to operate, maintain, and collect toll from CAVITEX, citing issues on the existing revenue sharing scheme.

Established by the PRA, the PEATC performs its mandate under the joint venture deal with MPTC's Cavitex Infrastructure Corp. (CIC) — the concessionaire in charge of the tollway's financing, construction, and design.

The CIC and PRA have a 90-10 revenue sharing scheme, in favor of CIC.

In its petition, PEATC claims that the revenue sharing scheme should have already transitioned to 60-40, in favor of the government, when the operations and maintenance agreement expired in 2021.

Ariel Inton, spokesman for PEATC, said that the 60-40 revenue sharing scheme should have taken effect much earlier when Phase 1 of the CAVITEX was already completed.

With this, Inton said that the government loses an estimated P1 billion annually due to the current 90-10 revenue-sharing structure.

Thus, the PEATC spokesperson said the P2.5-billion offer of the MPTC to buy out the government's stake in CAVITEX was "disadvantageous."

The Department of Finance (DOF) earlier said it was "open to the idea" about MPTC's plan to fully take over CAVITEX.

Inton said the PEATC would also discuss the matter with the Finance department and "we will tell DOF, tignan niyo 'yung P2.5 billion [offer]… isang taon lang nila 'yan (look at the P2.5 billion offer… that's only equivalent to a year’s worth of income)."

Sought for comment, MPTC president Rogelio Singson said, "the agreement is to complete the R1, R1 extension and Cavitex-C5 link."

"Hindi pa tapos lahat at kami ang gumagastos sa lahat. Ang contribution lang nila ay 'yung ROW (right-of-way) sa reclaimed area sa R1 of CAVITEX (Not everything is completed. Their contribution is only the ROW in the reclaimed area of CAVITEX)," Singson said.

Esteban, for his part, said he was not against the idea of fully privatizing CAVITEX, but it should be done through a public bidding.

"I-bid natin baka mas kikita ang gobyerno (Let's bid it, maybe the government will earn more)… Malay mo may mag-bid ng P100 billion, bakit aasa tayo sa P2.5 billion (Maybe there's a bid worth P100 billion so why should we settle with a P2.5-billion offer)," the PEATC chief said.

The PRA, in a separate statement, said it supports PEATC's action to file a case for mandamus against CIC.

The PRA added that it was open to a "peaceful yet just and pro-people settlement" of the issue. — VDV, GMA Integrated News