Marcos admin's flagship infra pipeline cost breaches P10 trillion

The Marcos administration’s roster of infrastructure flagship projects (IFPs) has breached P10 trillion as it now covers 209 initiatives, three of which are slated for completion this year, the Department of Economy, Planning, and Development (DepDev) said Monday.

According to DepDev Undersecretary Joseph Capuno, the IFPs are now estimated to have an indicative total project cost of P10.52 trillion as of September, higher than the P9.6-trillion estimate as of end-April when there were 207 projects.

The bulk of the projects are in physical connectivity with P8.993 trillion, followed by water resources with P821.09 billion, agriculture with P213.67 billion, health with P95.72 billion, digital connectivity with P89.79 billion, power and energy with P60.72 billion, education with P34.53 billion, and housing with P17.16 billion, while others shared the remaining P195.32 billion.

Three projects are expected to be completed this year — the Central Luzon Link Expressway (CLLEX) Phase 1, the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX)-South Luzon Expressway (SLEX) Connector Road, and the Bucana Bridge.

“All are expected to be completed within the year,” Capuno told reporters in a briefing in Mandaluyong City.

In the remaining pipeline, 31 projects have already been approved for implementation, equivalent to P1.503 trillion. Nine of these are expected to be completed before the end of the Marcos term in 2028, while the majority or 22 projects will be done beyond that.

Eight projects worth P283.73 billion are now for government approval, 44 projects worth P2.033 trillion are under project preparation, and 40 projects worth P2.559 trillion are under pre-project preparation.

Seven projects have already been completed, six of which were completed last year — the P12.54-billion Cagayan de Oro River Flood Risk Improvement and Management Project; the P8.03-billion Panguil Bay Bridge; the P7.57-billion Integrated Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Change Adaptation Measures in the Low Lying Areas of Pampanga Bay Project; the P5.26-billion Arterial Road Bypass Project Phase III; the P4.63-billion Pasig-Marikina Channel Improvement Project Phase V; and the P3.73-billion Surallag-T’Boli-San Jose Road in South Cotabato. The P1.24-billion Samar Pacific Coastal Road Project was completed in 2023. —KG, GMA Integrated News