2 US Firms Join Ayala Railroad ProjectLOS ANGELES, May 8 /PRNewswire/ -- US industrial and financing giants Bechtel Enterprises International Ltd. and GE Capital Asia Pacific Ltd. today signed a memorandum of understanding A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) is a legal document describing a bilateral or multilateral agreement between parties. It expresses a convergence of will between the parties, indicating an intended common line of action and may not imply a legal commitment. (MOU (Minutes Of Usage) A metric used to compute billing and/or statistics for telephone calls or other network use. ) with Manila-based Ayala corporation signifying their entry into a US$ 600 million railroad project. The MCX which stands for Manila-Calabarzon Express is designed to provide commuter and freight service between Metro-Manila and the southern provinces of Luzon. President Fidel V. Ramos Fidel Valdez Ramos (born March 18, 1928) was the 12th President of the Philippines. He succeeded Corazon Aquino and governed until 1998, when he was succeeded by Joseph Estrada. He was the first and only (to date) non-Roman Catholic president. , who is in Los Angeles attending an Asia Society forum on the Philippines, witnessed the signing of a memorandum of understanding among the companies. Ramos has expressed keen interest in seeing the rail project through since it bolsters his administration's privatization program. Bechtel and GE Capital can each take up to take up to 10% equity position into MCX valued at approximately US$ 120 million. The entry of the two firms is a landmark in the evolution of the project which has been granted an "Unsolicited Proposal Status" by the country's National Economic Development Authority (NEDA). As such it can only be challenged by a superior concept and which -- under the rules -- Ayala can match. The land route between Manila and the southern provinces is one of the most congested areas in Luzon island. The introduction of modern MCX locomotives, air conditioned coached, signaling systems and maintenance facilities is expected to dramatically cut down travel time and make efficient a service run by the state-owned Philippine national Railways Philippine National Railways, also known by its acronym, PNR, is a state-owned railway system in the Philippines, organized under the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) as an attached agency. (PNR). The Ayala led consortium projects that when fully operational, it can cater to as many as 150,000 passengers daily compared to the current 13,000 daily computers being served by PNR. The first phase of MCX seeks to add a new set of tracks to the current two between Tayuman/Caloocan and the current Calamba stations, with spur lines to Carmona in Cavite and Canlubang in Laguna. Freight services will be handled by International Container Terminal Services, Inc., another Manila based company involved in container handling and ports management. Additional phases in the plan include extending the line to the southern port of Batangas City thus linking it to the deep-water port of Manila The Port of Manila, Manila, Philippines, is located in the vicinity of Manila Bay, one of the finest natural harbors in the world. The Port of Manila is the Premier International Shipping Gateway to the Philippines. . An additional lateral section can connect Lucena City in the east to Sangley Point in the west thus opening up the entire southern Luzin area to a modern transport facility. Those who signed the documents were: Ayala Infrastructure Ventures, Inc. President Delfin Lazaro; Bechtel Enterprises International Ltd. Executive Vice President Dan K.H. Chao; GE Capital International Inc. Country manager and President Ed Ng; and ICTSI ICTSI International Container Terminal Services Inc Chairman Enrique K. Razon, Jr. Signing as witnesses were Mitsubishi Corporation, Manila Branch Manager Hisashi Nomaguchi, and Ayala Corporation, Associate Director Danilo A. Gozo. The MCX project is one of 11 MOU/MOAs signed in the US during President Ramos's visit this year. SOURCE Ayala Corporation
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/CONTACT: Danny Gozo of Ayala Corporation, 632-841-5372/ CO: Ayala Corporation; Bechtel Enterprises International Ltd.; GE Capital Asia Pacific Ltd. ST: California IN: TRN SU: GW-DO -- NYTH012 -- 7114 05/08/97 07:01 EDT http://www.prnewswire.com |
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