The Department of Transportation (DOTr) announced over the weekend that the construction of the terminal building for the New Manila International Airport or NMIA in Bulakan, Bulacan is expected to start in 2026.
This was learned during an inspection and project briefing conducted by the Regional Project Monitoring Committee led by the Department of Economy, Planning, and Development (formerly National Economic Development Authority).
Engineer Abelardo Sore Jr., DOTr project manager for NMIA, said approximately 80 percent of land development, particularly land piling along the Manila Bay shoreline, would be completed next year.
The NMIA terminal building will rise on a 2,500-hectare site designed by San Miguel Aero City Inc. (SMAI). It includes five wings and 240 boarding gates.
Behind the terminal, plans are underway for four parallel runways.
Once completed, the airport can handle 35 to 100 million passengers annually, positioning it as one of Southeast Asia’s largest air transport hubs.
SMAI said the remaining land development requires an additional 33 million cubic meters of sand to complete the reclamation works.
If the timeline stays on track, full airport operations could be expected by 2028.
Complementing the airport is a network of 21 planned access roads and expressways, including the eight-kilometer spur road from the North Luzon Expressway connecting Marilao and Balagtas, as well as the Northern Access Link Expressway, which is currently under construction.
The NMIA project is being developed under a Public-Private Partnership scheme, wherein San Miguel Corporation (SMC) funds, constructs, and manages the facility, which will eventually revert to government ownership upon expiration of the concession period.
SMC was awarded the concession by the DOTr in 2019, and subsequently secured a 50-year franchise through Republic Act 11506, passed in 2020.
The airport's total estimated cost is P735 billion. Some P536 billion has already been registered with the Board of Investments.