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The Philippine Ports Authority Port Management Office of Agusan turned over on June 2 the management of Masao port to Concord Arrastre and Stevedoring Corp
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CASCOR won the 15-year contract with a proposed concession fee of P687.365 million
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CASCOR said it is the cargo-handling operator for all state owned-ports in Butuan City, which includes Masao port
The Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) Port Management Office of Agusan officially turned over on June 2 the terminal management of Masao port in Agusan Del Norte to Concord Arrastre and Stevedoring Corp. (CASCOR).
The turnover follows PPA’s award of the 15-year port terminal management contract to CASCOR, which won the contract bid with a proposed concession fee of P687.365 million. The bidding was conducted pursuant to PPA’s Port Terminal Management Regulatory Framework (PTMRF), which outlines new rules for terminal management contracts.
PPA’s Bid and Awards Committee in a resolution on March 28 recommended the award of the contract to CASCOR, which bested two other companies’ proposals during the opening of bids on March 14.
Prior to the bidding under the PTMRF, CASCOR has been the cargo-handling operator of Masao port, as well as all state owned-ports in Butuan City.
Masao port handled 210,662 metric tons of domestic cargoes in 2021, up from 149,615 MT in 2020.
PPA since 2018 has implemented various projects to rehabilitate Masao Port, including the extension of its pier, expansion of the port’s back up area, repair and widening of the Ro-Ro ramp from 9 meters to 16 meters, construction of a new gate facility, and the refurbishment of its terminal office building. The projects were completed in October 2019, allowing the port to become an alternate facility to decongest Nasipit port also in Agusan del Norte.
The Masao contract covers the management and operation of the cargo-handling, passenger, /roll-off (RoRo), and other port-related services at the ports. The projects involve stevedoring services, Ro-Ro cargo services, bagging services, container terminal management, passenger terminal management, porterage services, storage management, waste and shore reception facility management, water distribution services, and ancillary and other related services.
The bidding was conducted through open competitive bidding procedures using non-discretionary /fail criterion as specified in PPA Administrative Order (AO) No. 12-2018, as amended.
AO 12-2018 provides guidelines for selecting and awarding contracts under the PTMRF.
PTMRF, provided under AO 03-2016, seeks to promote private sector participation in port management. Under this framework, investments in ports are to be categorized into six tiers, ranging from a fully private concession to a fully PPA-managed port, to make it easier to determine the investment arrangements of a port.
Masao port falls under Tier 3, which means the contractor’s investments include above-ground fixtures and semi-fixtures, and mobile handling equipment.
Aside from Masao port, PPA earlier also opened the bidding for the port terminal management contracts of Puerto Princesa, Ormoc, Tabaco, Legazpi, Zamboanga, Iligan, Ozamiz, Calapan, Tacloban, Nasipit, Matnog, Fort San Pedro, Pulupandan, Surigao, Tagbilaran, Pagadian, Pasig River, and Sasa ports. – Roumina Pablo
