The Japanese firms Mitsubishi Corporation and Tokyo Gas are among those looking to invest in the 105.3km Batangas-Manila (BatMan) high pressure gas pipeline in Philippines worth $2.2bn.
The Philippine government is planning to tender the project in this year and is considering a public-private partnership (PPP) mode.
The Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) deputy director for plant and infrastructure business support division Hiroshi Yoneyama was reported by mb.com.ph as saying that Mitsubishi and Tokyo Gas are interested to join the BatMan pipeline project if the government will bid it out under PPP.
The proposed BatMan pipeline project will underpin the country’s gas infrastructure where the project’s integrated components include liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal and other downstream gas-fed facilities including power plants.
The Philippine National Oil Company (PNOC) is likely to bid out the pipeline project in the fourth quarter this year on behalf of the government.
The establishment of the pipeline will depend on the development of an added gas supply, the planned construction of liquefied natural gas (LNG) re-gas facility, expected to be in Batangas, and support the extraction of additional gas from the Malampaya field.