If you’re from Mindanao, chances are, you are familiar with Panguil Bay – a gap that separates the cities of Tubod, Lanao del Norte, and Tangub City, Misamis Occidental. For motorists, they have two options to reach the other side of the bay: 1) via a 2.5-hour RoRo (Roll on, Roll off) ferry ride or 2) a 100-kilometer loop around the bay.
Now, a 3-kilometer bridge is being constructed to reduce travel time to just 7 minutes.
The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), through Undersecretary for Unified Project Management Office (UPMO) Operations, Emil Sadain, has recently reported that the construction of Panguil Bay Bridge which will connect Tubod, Lanao del Norte and Tangub City, Misamis Occidental is on-going at full steam.
In an inspection report to Public Works Secretary, Roger Mercado, Usec. Sadain revealed that the design and build for the 3.169-kilometer bridge project is progressing at a brisk pace, having attained a weighted average of 42% completion to date.
Usec. Sadain, Chief Implementer of President Duterte administration’s flagship projects under Build Build Build Program, arrived Thursday, January 27, 2022, in Lanao del Norte and conducted an offshore inspection at Panguil Bay towards Misamis Occidental to check the bridge foundation works. He was joined by UPMO Roads Management Cluster 2 (Multilateral) Project Director Sharif Madsmo Hasim, Bureau of Design OIC Director Edwin Matanguihan, Bureau of Construction OIC Director Aristarco Doroy, and Project Managers Teresita Bauzon and Mike Ramos.
The engineering design for the bridge was based on an extensive geotechnical survey onshore and offshore in 2020 as well as gathered bathymetric data from the study of the underwater depth of ocean floors to ensure that the Panguil Bay Bridge is built on good foundations with high strength to weight ratio.
In 2021, DPWH UPMO Roads Management Cluster 2 (Multilateral) and its contractor Namkwang-Kukdong-Gumgwang Joint Venture have stepped up construction of bored piles foundation with about 40 out of the total 54 already completed to date.
By the end of this year, DPWH is targeting to reach 80% project accomplishment with completed approach bridge from Abutment 1 to Pier 10 at Tangub side, Main Bridge Pylon 1 and 2, and Pier 23 to Abutment 2 at Tubod side.
The project is expected to be completed by December 2023, with full-year activities centered on the approach bridge from Pier 10 to 17 Tangub side and Pier 18 to 23 Tubod side, 320 meters Main Bridge, and the approach roads.
The construction of a high-level bridge across Panguil Bay in Northern Mindanao will end the decades-long wait for better connectivity between Tubod and Tangub City.
Panguil Bay Bridge will help address transportation challenges as other present modes between Tangub and Tubod is by land travel of 2 to 2.5 hours over a total length of 100 kilometers.
The project is funded by a loan agreement between the Government of the Philippines and the Korean Export-Import Bank.
