Spanish conglomerate to study feasibility of completing Metro Cebu Expressway

A SPANISH multinational conglomerate is set to hold a feasibility study on the Metro Cebu Expressway (MCE) to determine the viability of continuing the 74-kilometer infrastructure project, which has remained unfinished since its construction began in 2018.

Acciona officials met with Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia at the Capitol in Cebu City on Thursday, Aug. 1, 2024, to discuss the project.

Ruben Camba, Acciona’s director for infrastructure in Southeast Asia, told Garcia that a Japanese investor had already expressed interest in partnering with them to fund the project, the Provincial Government reported on its official social media page.

Camba initially requested documents as to the traffic count of the buses at the Cebu South Bus Terminal to determine the feasibility of the project from a business perspective.

The Provincial Government invited Acciona to complete the project as it has an ongoing partnership with the Province in constructing and operating a 150-megawatt solar power plant in northern Cebu.

The Spanish-based firm was behind the construction of the 8.5-kilometer Cebu-Cordova Link Expressway.

Garcia ordered a stoppage on the MCE project after a portion of its Segment 3A in Barangays Inayagan and Cantao-an, City of Naga, experienced landslides in October 2023.

Transfer

Later, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) transferred oversight of the MCE project to the Cebu Provincial Government, which vowed expedite its completion through a public-private partnership (PPP).

Before turning over the project to the Province, the DPWH had divided the construction of the MCE into four stations: Segment 1 (Minglanilla-Cebu City; Mandaue-Consolacion boundary), Segment 2 (Mandaue-Consolacion Boundary to Danao City), Segment 3A; and Segment 3B (remaining portion proposed for PPP) have not begun.

The project’s original length was 56.9 kilometers, but it was expanded to 74 kilometers due to changes made to the MCE route.

MCE has been plagued with controversies, including the lack of necessary permits.

The Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) 7 learned that the DPWH had neglected to obtain an environmental compliance certificate, which attests to the project’s compliance with environmental laws and regulations and the existence of all management plans as required by the environmental impact assessment. The EMB 7 learned about this during a series of meetings with the DPWH 7 representatives on Nov. 20, 2023, and February and March 2024. / EHP