The Philippines and South Korea signed on Monday a $172.64 million loan agreement for the construction of a new international container port in Cebu that aims to free up the existing seaport in the province and provide a more efficient and reliable transport infrastructure for the unimpeded flow of goods and services in the Visayas.
The agreement was signed by Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III on behalf of the Philippine government and Sung-Soo Eun, chairman and president of the Export Import Bank of Korea(KEXIM).
President Duterte and South Korea President Moon Jae-in witnessed the signing of the loan accord, which was among the five agreements signed during the Philippine leader’s official visit here.
A new Cebu International Container Port with a total estimated project cost of P10.1 billion (approximately $199.25 million) will be built on a 25-hectare reclaimed land in the town of Consolacion in Cebu.
It will include a berthing facility with a 500-meter quay wall length that can simultaneously accommodate two 2,000 TEU (Twenty-foot Equivalent Unit) vessels; operating facilities and structures for containers such as a freight station and inspection shed; an access road and bridge; and a dredged waterway and turning basin.
Aside from the construction of physical structures, the loan also covers the procurement of cargo handling equipment and consulting services.
KEXIM-EDCF will extend the amount of $172.641 million (approximately P8.8 billion or 186.97 billion Korean Won) for the Port project with a preferential interest rate of 0.15 percent per annum for non-consulting services and zero percent for consulting services.
The loan has a maturity period of 40 years inclusive of a 10-year grace period.
The Philippines, for its part, will provide a counterpart fund of $26.09 million (about P1.4 billion or 28.9 billion Korean Won) for the project.
Aside from the loan accord, President Duterte and President Moon also witnessed the signing of the following agreements: 1) the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Department of Science and Technology and the Ministry of Science and Information and Communications Technology of Korea on Scientific and Technological Cooperation; 2) MOU between the Department of Transportation (DOTr) and Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport of Korea concerning Cooperation in the Field of Transport; 3) renewal of the Establishment of the Joint Committee for Trade and Economic Cooperation, and 4) MOU between the Department of National Defense and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy of Korea for the Cooperation on the Expansion of Renewable Energy Deployment.
Korea has already provided loans amounting to $100.13 million for the Panguil Bay Bridge project connecting Tangub, Misamis Occidental and Tubod, Lanao del Norte; $20.63 million for the Samar Pacific Coastal Road Project; $207.88 million, Jalaur Multipurpose Project Stage II in Iloilo; and $80.48 million, Integrated Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Change Adaptation Measures in Low Lying Areas of Pampanga Bay;
It has also extended a $71.61 million loan for the modernization of Palawan’s Puerto Princesa Airport, which was completed in April last year. (DOF)
