(CNN Philippines) — Maintenance of the MRT-3 will soon be divided among several companies — seven at the most — under the multi-disciplinary contract, the Transportation Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya said.
In an interview Tuesday (May 12) with Newsroom anchor Jing Magsaysay, Abaya said the six-month contract, amounting to P342 million, will cover seven components: building facilities and equipment, power supply, tracks and permanent ways, communications, automated fare collection system, conveyance, and rolling stock.
“[The seven components] could be maintained by seven [companies or] it could be won by a couple depending on the procurement result,” Abaya said.
The bidding for each of the components is now ongoing and the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) expects to receive the notice to proceed by June.
But Abaya said the multi-disciplinary mode is just an intermediate solution. The eventual goal is to get a more stable three-year contract with just one company managing the upkeep.
On Monday, repairs done on the air-conditioning and speedometer forced the MRT-3 to operate with only 10 trains — half of the number needed to operate on peak hours.
It was the latest in a string of glitches which prompted MRT-3 General Manager Roman Buenafe to express his low confidence with the current maintenance provider Autre Porte Technique Global Inc. (APT Global).
Related: MRT chief blames contractor for train mess
Abaya said that splitting the maintenance would not mean higher expenses for the MRT-3 as the monthly budget would just be divided among the chosen companies.
He added that a prototype train from the CNR Dalian Locomotive and Rolling Stock Co., Ltd. will also arrive by August.
It’s part of the P3.8-billion contract for 48 new trains which would ensure train arrival every 2.5 minutes.
“We have a team currently in China. I’ve given them specific instructions to visit and check and monitor the manufacturing of the new trains monthly,” Abaya said.
The DOTC’s long-term plan is to implement an equity value buy-out (EVBO) which would terminate the concession agreement with MRT-3 private sector owner Metro Rail Transit Corporation (MRTC) and transfer ownership to the government.
The DOTC and the Department of Finance were tasked to implement the EVBO under Executive Order No. 167 s. 2013.
“We are pushing for it. There’s an EO that executes it so we have to talk to the [government financial institutions] namely Land Bank and the DBP to get them comfortable with the direction,” Abaya said.
