DPWH: Cost of new Senate building could reach P27-B

The cost of the new Senate building in Fort Bonifacio, Taguig could reach P27 billion, according to an official of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).

“Aabutin ng P20 to P27 [billion], including the cost of land, plus the inflationary cost kasama na po,” said DPWH Assistant Secretary Antonio Molano Jr. during the continuation of the Senate’s probe on the new Senate building project.

(The cost of the new Senate building could reach P20 to P27 billion, including the cost of land, plus the inflationary cost.)

According to Senator Alan Peter Cayetano, chair of the Committee on Government Corporations and Public Enterprises, the breakdown of the construction cost is as follows:

• Phase I for the core and shell: P8.9 billion
• Phase II for the fit-out: P2.5 billion
• Cost of Land: P1.7 billion
• Phase III for the works to finish/complete: P10.33 billion

Molano said the inflationary cost is about 20 to 25%.

According to Senate President Francis "Chiz" Escudero, the cost of construction of the building is currently at P23 billion, almost three times the original budget of P9 billion.

Cayetano also flagged the budget for the facade or the outer look of the building that was implemented.

DPWH project manager Liv Ivory Lindsay Lancion explained the agency opted to go with the P498 million for the facade, instead of the P1.031 budget, due to value engineering.

However, since there are other costings, the amount for the facade construction ballooned to P936 million.

Before the hearing was adjourned, Cayetano requested DPWH to compute the proposed cost for the new senate building. —Mariel Celine Serquiña/RF, GMA Integrated News