Maharlika Highway bidding set

THE Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) is targeting to start the bidding of the Maharlika Highway rehabilitation project within this month.

“We have not started the bidding yet, but we are targeting the bidding (for this project) this month as well,” Public Works Secretary Vivencio B. Dizon told reporters on the sidelines of the Management Association of the Philippines General Membership Meeting in Taguig City on Wednesday.

The Maharlika Highway, also known as the Pan-Philippine Highway, connects northern Luzon to the Zamboanga Peninsula with ferries linking Bicol and Samar as well as Leyte and Surigao.

The agency said previously that it is hoping to start the full rehabilitation of the Maharlika Highway by May, with construction to commence by June.

The agency said it has met with major contractors, including EEI Corp. and D.M. Consunji, Inc., for the rehabilitation of Maharlika Highway. However, Mr. Dizon declined to provide an update, noting that the bidding process is still being finalized this month.

The agency has also engaged foreign consultants to support the design of the Maharlika Highway rehabilitation plan, as the DPWH wants to adopt new technologies in line with international highway standards.

The DPWH is also planning to begin the second phase of Epifanio de los Santos Avenue (EDSA) rehabilitation project within the month.

The second phase of the project is expected to cost around P4 billion, Mr. Dizon said, noting that the entire EDSA rehabilitation project is estimated to cost P6 billion.

The agency, together with the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, and the Department of Transportation, started the EDSA rehabilitation in December 2025.

This forms part of a revised plan, cutting the rehab project to eight months from the original target of two years. — Ashley Erika O. Jose