SHOULD it win the public bidding for the modernization and expansion of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia), a public-private partnership deal that has been put on hold since last year, Ayala Corp. can improve the state of the decades-old air hub in two years, a senior officer said.

Jose Rene D. Almendras, who sits as president at AC Infrastructure Holdings Corp., said his group is ready to take on the challenge of enhancing the state of the main international gateway in Manila, and is anticipating its tender.

“We’re very interested in the Naia. We have a consortium ready for the Naia,” he said in an interview. “We are actually excited if the government ever decides to push through with the Naia.”

Almendras said his group can improve the operations of the airport in just two years.

“We think we can improve the Naia in 24 months,” he said.

The public tender for the redevelopment of the airport was deferred, as the government studies the “best configuration” for the tender.

It was also put on hold, as the government focuses on the bidding for contracts to modernize five airports in the region.

Under the initial terms of the P74.56-billion Naia redevelopment deal, the private partner will improve, upgrade and enhance the operational efficiencies of all existing terminals of the Naia covering both land side and air side (except air-traffic services), to meet the International Civil Aviation Organization (Icao) standards and develop the main gateway airport of the Philippines.

Almendras hinted his group may make a counter offer on an unsolicited proposal for the development of an outside city airport, depending on what the government decides to pursue.

When asked if Ayala is interested in joining the Swiss Challenge for any of the two unsolicited proposals for the development of an airport to complement the Naia, he replied: “I guess we’ll make the decision when the time comes.”

He added: “In all the big cities, there’s always a city airport and an outside-the-city airport. So that’s the school of thought—that is the more ideal solution for the Naia.”

There are two parties that have submitted their unsolicited proposals for the development of a new international gateway.

On one hand, Solar Group-led All-Asia Resources and Reclamation Corp. and partners Belle Corp. and China Communications Construction Co. announced they plan to spend $20 billion to build an airport in an area in Sangley Point, Cavite.

Its plan involves the reclamation of 2,500 hectares of land near a naval and air base at Sangley Point. The project includes a new airport for up to 90 million passengers per year. The existing Naia airport will be replaced by new urban development.

According to a study conducted by Danish consulting engineering company Ramboll Group, the new airport, when built, will have two parallel runways to secure future capacity, three terminal spaces, a reserved space for cargo and maintenance facilities.

San Miguel Corp.’s $10-billion proposal, on the other hand, involves the construction of a 1,600-hectare international gateway somewhere in the south of Metro Manila. The airport, which would have doubled the capacity of the Naia, would have included the construction of a low-cost carrier terminal, a train system and a dedicated tollway.

The government has yet to make a decision on which of the two proposals it will likely accept. Nonetheless, any of the two will have to undergo a competitive challenge, as provided by law.