The Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) has set October 29 as the deadline for competing bids under the Swiss Challenge process for Cerberus Asia Pacific Investments, LLC's P7-billion unsolicited proposal to rehabilitate, operate, and expand Subic Bay International Airport (SBIA).

In a bid bulletin dated July 31 and posted on the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Center's website, SBMA invited interested parties to submit comparative proposals for a 25-year operate-rehabilitate-add-transfer concession. Bid opening is also scheduled for October 29, according to the instructions to bidders.

SBMA said the final draft PPP agreement and final bid bulletin will be issued on September 29. One-on-one meetings with prospective challengers are scheduled from September 16 to 18. Interested parties may obtain the tender documents and instructions to bidders upon payment of a P1.4-million participation fee.

Under the Swiss Challenge process, competing proponents are invited to submit comparative proposals against an unsolicited proposal. The original proponent is then given the opportunity to match or improve upon the best competing offer.

SBMA specified that challengers must have undertaken projects involving overall responsibility for design, engineering, and construction. Prospective challengers must also have a minimum net worth of P2.80 billion, or its foreign currency equivalent, as of the end of fiscal year 2025, and hold at least P22 billion in assets at the time of bid submission.

Cerberus Capital Management manages approximately $65 billion in assets globally. Its affiliate, Cerberus Asia Pacific Investments, focuses on investments in logistics, infrastructure, technology, and energy. Cerberus operates part of the 310-hectare former Hanjin shipyard located west of the airport, which formed the basis for its unsolicited proposal. The shipyard had been idle since Hanjin Heavy Industries and Construction Philippines ceased operations and filed for receivership in 2019, leaving behind one of the largest idle industrial sites in the country.

The proposal covers the rehabilitation of existing airport facilities and the development of new infrastructure to expand capacity and attract additional tenants. Cerberus also committed to investing "considerable financial resources" and leveraging its real estate management capabilities to develop the airport. Under its proposal, the company said it would maintain existing leases during the early years of the concession.

SBMA currently operates SBIA, which serves as an alternate airport to Ninoy Aquino International Airport and handles cargo, corporate, and general aviation traffic. SBIA has seen limited scheduled commercial passenger service in recent years, and government planners have long identified its redevelopment as a potential pressure valve for NAIA, which has operated well beyond its designed passenger capacity. The project is among several airport modernization initiatives the Philippines has pursued through the PPP framework as it seeks to upgrade gateways outside Metro Manila. — Ashley Erika O. Jose