Philippines Plans to Accelerate Port Development Projects

The Philippine News Agency (PNA) said in their latest announcement that the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) will be accelerating the implementation infrastructure projects in ports nationwide, following a robust growth in revenues for the first quarter of the year.

The strong financial performance will enable the agency to further improve ports which are heavily congested with cargoes and passengers, according to PNA.

“We have been injecting so much investment in our ports in support of the Build-Build-Build program of the Duterte Administration,” PPA General Manager, Jay Daniel Santiago, said in a statement Tuesday.

“Dredging as well as repair and maintenance costs comprise almost entirely our expenses for the period, all aimed at making our ports efficient and more responsive to the demands of times.”

PPA is currently conducting 45 locally-funded port development projects in Luzon wherein 7 have already been completed, 19 are ongoing and another 19 projects are for procurement; 19 for Visayas where 3 have already been finished, 8 projects are ongoing and 8 are for procurement; and 40 for Mindanao where 5 have been delivered, 21 ongoing and 14 under procurement. Among the ports currently undergoing improvements are Puerto Princesa, Eastern Leyte, Ilocos Norte, Occidental Mindoro, Batangas, Ozamiz.