The Panguil Bay Bridge is in working progress

The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) already started laying down foundations for the Panguil Bay Bridge. Its target completion date is in December 2023, with the 3.169-km mega bridge connecting Tangub City in Misamis Occidental and the municipality of Tubod in Lanao Del Norte across Panguil Bay. 

As per DPWH Secretary Mark Villar, they are currently laying down the foundations of the Panguil Bay Bridge. In terms of progress, the project is now at 22%, with 15 out of the 54 bored piles for its substructure are already in place. 

The government agency is working together with Korean joint venture contractor Namkwang-Kukdong-Gumwang. The bridge’s board piles were successfully installed using reverse circulation drilling machines that are placed on barges, allowing them to set up boreholes. This is followed by the launching of 23-mm thick permanent steel casings which is done by using cranes and pile hammers. The process is then topped off by pouring concrete into the boreholes. The DPWH will test each pile after 7 to 14 days of concrete placement. This is done to assure the quality and integrity of the concrete.

By December 2021, the DPWH is expected to achieve 74% progress or 40 out of 54 boreholes, as the government agency targets to prepare an average of 6 to 7 holes per month. The remaining 26% or 14 boreholes, on the other hand, are expected to be accomplished in February 2022.

The Panguil Bay Bridge is set to become one of the longest bridges in the Philippines, surpassing the 2.16-km San Juanico Bridge. The P7.375-billion project is targeted to be finished by December 2023 and it will span 3.169-km. This mega-bridge shall seamlessly connect Tangub City in Misamis Occidental and the municipality of Tubod in Lanao Del Norte across Panguil Bay, with the usual 2 and half-hour travel time reduced to just 7 minutes.