MANILA - GMR-Megawide on Monday touted its construction expertise and cost competitiveness as it went against a "super consortium" of 7 of the country's biggest firms for the right to rehabilitate the capital's main airport.
The Filipino-Indian consortium revamped the Cebu Mactan International Airport while GMR also led the rebuilding of the New Delhi Airport.
It submitted a P156-billion proposal for the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, less than half the cost compared to its much larger competitor.
GMR Megawide plan for its P156 billion NAIA rehabilitation proposal. Photo by GMR Megawide
"We have always been cost competitive. We deliver on time and the quality is more than the expectation of the government and the public," GMR-Megawide chairman Edgar Saavedra said.
"We were able to compete with the big ones because we were able to bring in the technology, the know-how. That’s where we’re good at instead of purely construction," he told ANC's Early Edition.
GMR-Megawide, unlike the "super consortium," is not pushing for the construction of a new runway at the NAIA. Such a structure would not significantly boost capacity, said GMR Megawide Cebu Airport Corp chief executive adviser Andrew Harrison.
Unlocking congestion while increasing the terminal capacity will help NAIA "take its rightful pace as one of the major hub in the ASEAN region," he said.
"With our experience in Mactan, we understand Filipinos, how they travel, what are the behavior during peak season," said Louie Ferrer, president GMR Megawide Cebu Airport Corp.
Harrison, who believes GMR is in the same league as Changi Airports International, said managing an airport is about understanding the passengers and providing convenience.
"The most important aspect of an airport is not the runway, it’s not the parking stands, it’s the washroom. Because if you have a lousy experience in the washroom it doesn’t matter how good or how efficient the airport runs," he said.
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