New Manila International Airport (NMIA)

[airline_builder]

the FLEETING MIND of RSA hahaha

they first floated the idea of  building an airport in Ternate Cavite or thereabouts, they should have stuck to that plan and would now be an operating airport as we speak.......but then again what ever is in bulacan surely serve a massive incentive loan

[Solblanc]

airline_builder wrote

the FLEETING MIND of RSA hahaha

they first floated the idea of  building an airport in Ternate Cavite or thereabouts, they should have stuck to that plan and would now be an operating airport as we speak.......but then again what ever is in bulacan surely serve a massive incentive loan

TBH I feel like the initial proposal to reclaim the PEA-Amari islands might’ve been better.

I feel awful that we managed to approve all this reclamation in Manila bay for real estate we don’t need (Bay area condos have been notoriously empty since the exit of pogo) but we can’t properly reclaim land for an airport.

There are so many people saying that the lack of material stems from them realizing that they need more than expected. I’d have thought boskalis would’ve done the proper soil tests first. Or maybe critics were right in that they used the most optimistic forecasts of sea level rise.

I really don’t want this project to fail. It’s a massive waste of money if it is. Literal sunk costs. But people can’t help but be critical.

I’ve always said the easiest way for SMC to shut the critics up is to produce quality results. And… they’re having trouble doing so in most, if not all of their projects.

[Arianespace]

Gustavo J Oppenheimer wrote

“NMIA did not cause Bulacan’s flooding. This is a problem the province has had to contend with for many generations,” the company said in a statement on Thursday.

https://insiderph.com/smc-says-nmia-was-designed-around-generations-old-bulacan-flood-risks

Which is actually true. NMIA project has nothing to do with it as Bulacan and Pampanga is built on wet lands. My old folks left their perennially flood stricken place in Pampanga before world war II and never looked back. It was the same reason why 5km Candaba viaduct was built in 1977. Those who have nowhere else to go contends with the perennial flooding. It was a problem then as it is a worsening problem now. End of story.

https://pdrrmo.bulacan.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/FLOODING-HAZARD-MAP_LETTER-scaled.jpg

[filipinoavgeek]

Arianespace wrote

Gustavo J Oppenheimer wrote

“NMIA did not cause Bulacan’s flooding. This is a problem the province has had to contend with for many generations,” the company said in a statement on Thursday.

https://insiderph.com/smc-says-nmia-was-designed-around-generations-old-bulacan-flood-risks

Which is actually true. NMIA project has nothing to do with it as Bulacan and Pampanga is built on wet lands. My old folks left their perennially flood stricken place in Pampanga before world war II and never looked back. It was the same reason why 5km Candaba viaduct was built in 1977. Those who have nowhere else to go contends with the perennial flooding. It was a problem then as it is a worsening problem now. End of story.

https://pdrrmo.bulacan.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/FLOODING-HAZARD-MAP_LETTER-scaled.jpg

SMC needs to work on their PR and actually deliver results. Until they stop building mediocre infrastructure and become more transparent with what they're doing, people will continue to question them.

[kilohakdog]

I actually feel vindicated with my reservations with RSA/SMC. Just look at MRT-7!! It already spanned three administrations with no end in sight! The rolling stock for the line has been delivered expeditiously by Hyundai Rotem in 2018. They will be 10 years old and still rotting in open yards.

Hoping NMIA will not suffer the same sad, frustrating fate.

[Gustavo J Oppenheimer]

San Miguel Corp. chair and CEO Ramon S. Ang said European banks are financing the project, while foreign specialists are helping design and supervise critical work.

“Those financing this airport development are all foreign banks from Europe. We did not borrow the money here,” Ang said in a briefing attended by Bulacan-based and national media.

https://insiderph.com/eu-banks-global-heavyweights-line-up-behind-p740-b-bulacan-airport

[Arianespace]

Boscalis is actually tied to the EU bank which granted loan to SMC for the construction of NMIA. That is the reason why Boscalis would always be there until completion. So whoever got the idea that Boscalis is no longer connected with NMIA does not know what he is talking about.

Here is one of them

https://ambmanila.esteri.it/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Ceremonial-Loan-Signing-March-27-2025-306.jpg

[Solblanc]

Gustavo J Oppenheimer wrote

San Miguel Corp. chair and CEO Ramon S. Ang said European banks are financing the project, while foreign specialists are helping design and supervise critical work.

“Those financing this airport development are all foreign banks from Europe. We did not borrow the money here,” Ang said in a briefing attended by Bulacan-based and national media.

https://insiderph.com/eu-banks-global-heavyweights-line-up-behind-p740-b-bulacan-airport

Of all the things to publicize, this is not one of them. When boskalis was first roped in, the Euro was below 60 to the peso. Now it’s over 70. Even though Euro loans have lower interest rates, the exchange rate will put SMC in a worse position, as they don’t have any subsidiaries with Euro incomes. USD also depreciated against the Euro so their overseas food operations won’t necessarily be able to make up for that currency shortfall.

I can see why Ramon Ang is acting pissed all the time. He’s been digging himself into a hole with this project.

SMC’s debt to equity ratio is already nearing the maximum for an infra company. We’re seeing how they really are trying to cut corners because their bottom line is getting pretty dangerous. And if their biggest project just locked them into huge loans that have a bigger effective interest rate thanks to currency fluctuations, well, then they’re not exactly in the best headspace to make good decisions.

[filipinoavgeek]

Solblanc wrote

Gustavo J Oppenheimer wrote

San Miguel Corp. chair and CEO Ramon S. Ang said European banks are financing the project, while foreign specialists are helping design and supervise critical work.

“Those financing this airport development are all foreign banks from Europe. We did not borrow the money here,” Ang said in a briefing attended by Bulacan-based and national media.

https://insiderph.com/eu-banks-global-heavyweights-line-up-behind-p740-b-bulacan-airport

Of all the things to publicize, this is not one of them. When boskalis was first roped in, the Euro was below 60 to the peso. Now it’s over 70. Even though Euro loans have lower interest rates, the exchange rate will put SMC in a worse position, as they don’t have any subsidiaries with Euro incomes. USD also depreciated against the Euro so their overseas food operations won’t necessarily be able to make up for that currency shortfall.

I can see why Ramon Ang is acting pissed all the time. He’s been digging himself into a hole with this project.

SMC’s debt to equity ratio is already nearing the maximum for an infra company. We’re seeing how they really are trying to cut corners because their bottom line is getting pretty dangerous. And if their biggest project just locked them into huge loans that have a bigger effective interest rate thanks to currency fluctuations, well, then they’re not exactly in the best headspace to make good decisions.

They were already doing questionable infrastructure decisions even before the current currency depreciation and Middle East crisis. Those made things worse but people had been complaining about SMC's infrastructure being "warehouse"-like for years. The issue seems to be with the company itself and why they can't seemingly do a good job of getting actually good architects and engineers. All of the bad PR could have been avoided if they just did their job. I wanted to give them the benefit of the doubt but it has become clear as of late that SMC is having trouble.

[kilohakdog]

See the “upgrades” for NAIA Departure areas, it looks like chicken coop or TODA terminal. With a company boasting of world-class excellence, what happened to their architects?

[airline_builder]

when a company has in its accounting books excessive loans and bottomless investment expenses - what does it equate to? TAX SHIELDS and LEGAL TAX AVOIDANCE

I will park it here.

[Arianespace]

I don't think the loans are excessive because SMC has good credit rating "AAA", rated as "stable" in the financial world as of 2025. When your company has stable outlook lending companies usually gives you lower interest rates because the risk involved is low. Aerocity's pedegree, whose got the loan, is back by the Philippines oldest and largest conglomerate with asset-backed loans valued at P2.9 trillion pesos. That is humungous by itself.

[AnonBoy]

airline_builder wrote

when a company has in its accounting books excessive loans and bottomless investment expenses - what does it equate to? TAX SHIELDS and LEGAL TAX AVOIDANCE

I will park it here.

tax shields and tax avoidance strategies and completely legal, and makes sense business-wise so there's no need to demonize this. I do not like san miguel and detest how they are handling their infrastructure commitments but misplaced and general sweeping statements like these are misleading and uniformed. we can do better.

[Gustavo J Oppenheimer]

During a recent meeting with reporters from national and Bulacan-based media outlets, the tycoon also made clear that failure was not an option.

“If this fails, San Miguel could fall, as all its money would go toward paying its debts,” Ang said.

“If we can bring in 40 million to 50 million foreign tourists, that can create one or two jobs [per tourist]. It would solve problems for the next generation,” he added.

The airport’s first runway is targeted for completion toward the end of 2028, with another potentially following each year until all four are ready by 2032, depending on demand.

Ang said each runway could handle about 35 million passengers annually, giving the new gateway room to absorb traffic beyond the limits of Ninoy Aquino International Airport, currently the country’s main gateway.

The surrounding aerotropolis is envisioned to extend that impact beyond aviation by attracting hotels, offices, logistics facilities and other businesses to Bulacan.

https://insiderph.com/ramon-angs-answer-to-ph-job-creation-is-a-p740-b-tourism-bet

[Solblanc]

Gustavo J Oppenheimer wrote

During a recent meeting with reporters from national and Bulacan-based media outlets, the tycoon also made clear that failure was not an option.

“If this fails, San Miguel could fall, as all its money would go toward paying its debts,” Ang said.

“If we can bring in 40 million to 50 million foreign tourists, that can create one or two jobs [per tourist]. It would solve problems for the next generation,” he added.

The airport’s first runway is targeted for completion toward the end of 2028, with another potentially following each year until all four are ready by 2032, depending on demand.

Ang said each runway could handle about 35 million passengers annually, giving the new gateway room to absorb traffic beyond the limits of Ninoy Aquino International Airport, currently the country’s main gateway.

The surrounding aerotropolis is envisioned to extend that impact beyond aviation by attracting hotels, offices, logistics facilities and other businesses to Bulacan.

https://insiderph.com/ramon-angs-answer-to-ph-job-creation-is-a-p740-b-tourism-bet

Banking on tourism? Seriously? Like how they make the experience so wonderful for tourists at Caticlan?

We weren't born yesterday. This airport is clearly a hijacking of our existing development masterplans that wastes the money that we invested in Clark and the NSCR.

Anyway, andiyan na. The damage is done. Clark has scaled down their masterplan. All Ramon Ang has to do now is actually finish the airport so we can get some economic activity out of it.

I wonder if he set his eyes on Sangley instead, things would've worked out better. The site of NMIA sank into the sea for a reason.