The Philippine PPP Center has announced that it has received thirty-one expressions of interest (EOI) from national and international firms for its Panel of transaction advisors.

The accepted firms will bid to provide project preparation and transaction support services for PPP projects under the Project Development and Monitoring Fund (PDMF).

The PPP Center's press release said:

"This is in an indication of the international consulting industry's confidence in the success of the PDMF as the Philippine PPP Program's main facilitator of diligent PPP project structuring and procurement."

The expansion and reconstitution is timely as more implementing agencies are drawn to the PDMF as their source of the much needed experience and expertise in pursuing critical infrastructure and development projects. Eleven projects have recently been granted PDMF support and are now for procurement of project preparation  and transaction support consultants from the PDMF panel.  Five projects applying for PDMF support are also lined up for the upcoming PDMF Board Meeting.

Usec. Cosette Canilao, PPP Center Executive Director, said:

"Since its inception in 2010, the PDMF has already proven its critical value towards ensuring that projects are diligently structured and procured, with the benefit of international experience and expertise.  The actual projects that went on to successful award and the very encouraging response from international bidders are real and the implementing agencies now recognize this."

To date, the PDMF has provided transaction advisors to twenty-three out of the fifty-four projects under the PPP pipeline. Five out of seven successfully tendered PPP projects have been supported by PDMF. As a revolving fund, PDMF reimbursements or reflows amounting to US$6.2 million, have already been received from the successfully tendered projects.

Established in 2010, the PDMF had initial funding of USD7 million put in by the government. Through an Asian Development Bank (ADB) administered Technical Assistance to the Philippine PPP Program, contributions (USD6 million and USD12 million) from the Australian Government were later added.

The Philippine government also put in an additional counterpart contribution of USD37.5 million. The total available fund of the PDMF is now at USD 62.5 million and is currently being tapped to support projects in the PPP pipeline.