[SIZE=3]Palace puts disputed airport terminal up for sale[/SIZE]
SOURCE:ABS-CBN NEWS, FRIDAY - MARCH 11, 2005

Malacaņan said on Thursday it would accept bids from investors willing to pay more than $300 million to acquire a new airport terminal seized from a consortium led by Germany's Fraport AG.

Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita said the government would use the money to compensate the consortium known as Philippine International Air Terminal Co. Inc (PIATCO).

"We are expecting in two weeks, at least, somebody to offer an unsolicited bid to acquire the airport," Ermita told a news conference.

The government seized the terminal at Manila's international airport in December after a two-year deadlock.

Ermita said three investors had expressed interest in the airport, which the government plans to open in June 21. He declined to give details.

The terminal, designed to handle 13 million passengers per year, had been due to open late in 2002, but the Supreme Court invalidated the contract in May that year.

The court ruled that the deal signed by the government of President Joseph Estrada, who was detained on corruption charges after he was removed from power in 2001, was illegal and fraught with irregularities.

Fraport has sought World Bank arbitration to settle the dispute, accusing Philippine officials of accepting massive bribes.

Manila has rejected its request for $425 million in compensation as too high and has threatened to bring criminal charges against the firm for offering bribes and breaking foreign-ownership laws.

PIATCO is seeking $565 million in a separate suit filed with the International Commercial Court in Singapore.
Reuters/abs-cbnNEWS.com