CEBU CITY – There is no stopping the construction of the 12-kilometer Lapu-Lapu Expressway (LLEX) in Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu.
METRO Pacific Tollways Corp. Chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan (fourth from right) leads the signing of the memorandum of understanding for the construction of the 12-kilometer Lapu-Lapu Expressway in Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu. (Mayor Junard ‘Ahong’ Chan FB)
The massive P27-billion project was sealed through the signing of the memorandum of understanding (MOU) on Thursday, March 6.
Leading the signing of the MOU was Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. (MPTC) Chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan and MPTC President and CEO Jose Maria Lim, LLEX Corp. representative Francis Lloyd Chua, Premium Megastructures Inc. Chairman Alfredo Comendador Jr., and Ulticon Builders Vice President for Operations Ruben Garcia.
Lapu-Lapu City Mayor Junard “Ahong” Chan, Vice Mayor Celedonio Sitoy, Cebu-Cordova Link Expressway Corp. (CCLEC) President and General Manager Allan Alfon, and Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia also graced the significant event.
The project encountered setbacks after MPTC’s Spanish private partner backed out.
The project still pushed through after the MVP Group of Companies decided to fully fund the project, Pangilinan said.
The construction of the skyway, the first in the country outside Metro Manila, is expected to be finished within two years.
City Legal Officer James Allan Sayson said the expressway would generate P1.32 billion in annual economic benefits or P3.6 million per day.
The expressway will be constructed at zero cost to the city government but it will receive shares from toll revenues and advertising income, Chan said.
The LLEX will provide a direct link between the Cebu-Cordova Link Expressway (CCLEX) and the Mactan-Cebu International Airport (MCIA).
The LLEX is expected to reduce travel time from the Cebu mainland to Mactan Island where the Mactan-Cebu International Airport is located.
The elevated toll road will also decongest the two existing Mactan-Mandaue bridges.