Behind the scenes in the NAIA bidding

It may have been the fastest privatization of a big-ticket government asset, but it certainly was far from being seamless.

- ELIJAH FELICE ROSALES

The privatization of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), the primary gateway to the Philippines, looked flawless on the surface, with the process completed in around 12 months, but observers, insiders and the bidders know it was quite a turbulent flight.

Or to put it more bluntly, it was a dogfight on the inside - among tycoons and between local and foreign bidders.

At the end of it, the consortium led by San Miguel Corp. (SMC), the country's diversified conglomerate led by tycoon Ramon S. Ang or RSA, bagged the 15-year concession to operate and maintain one of the worst airports in the world.

SMC SAP & Co. Consortium submitted the highest proposal of revenue share to the government at 82.16 percent, tipping the scale in its favor in the end. GMR Airports Consortium offered 33.3 percent while the Manila International Airport Consortium (MIAC) pitched 25.91 percent.

For the Department of Transportation headed by former airline boss Jaime Bautista, the equation was simple: the DOTr would choose whoever committed to share the largest revenue with the government from NAIA operations, excluding passenger fees.

And the math is as clear as day: 82.16 percent beats 33.3 percent and 25.91 percent, giving SMC SAP & Co. Consortium a landslide win.

Solicited versus unsolicited

Prior to this, however, the push to privatize NAIA started in a back-and-forth tussle between the DOTr and MIAC, as the group of local conglomerates and their foreign partner made an initial attempt to win the project through an unsolicited offer worth P100 billion filed on April 27, 2023.

Bautista was quick to inform the media a day later that the proposal had to be examined, making it clear there and then that his team would be difficult to please.