Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. (MPTC) on Sunday signaled its readiness to resume discussions with San Miguel Corp. (SMC) on the proposed consolidation of their tollway businesses—a move seen as pivotal in reshaping the country’s expressway landscape and unlocking synergies across major infrastructure assets.
“We’d like to engage them. Kasi everybody’s reported their first quarter results. So, now we can go back to work,” said MPTC Chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan, indicating that conditions are now favorable for reviving talks. “If we’re going to do it, we might as well do it as expeditiously as possible,” he added.
Discussions had previously stalled in March, when Pangilinan announced that MPTC was prioritizing fundraising to address debt obligations. However, with that financial focus now reportedly addressed, the door has reopened for potential alignment with SMC’s vast tollway operations.
The merger, if realized, would combine MPTC’s 240.6 kilometers of operating toll roads—spanning the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX), Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (SCTEX), Manila-Cavite Expressway (CAVITEX), and Cebu-Cordova Link Expressway—with SMC’s expansive portfolio, which includes South Luzon Expressway (SLEX), Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway (TPLEX), the Skyway system, and NAIA Expressway (NAIAX).
Industry analysts view the resumption of merger talks as commercially significant, potentially streamlining operations, reducing duplication, and enhancing regional connectivity.
The two companies are already collaborators in a P72-billion joint venture signed in August 2024, which covers the development of two critical expressways in southern Luzon: the 87.96-kilometer Cavite-Batangas Expressway and the Nasugbu-Bauan Expressway. The project underscores a growing alignment between the two infrastructure giants, beyond mere competition.
A successful merger could create the country’s most comprehensive toll road network, with implications for investment flows, traffic management, and long-term urban planning.
As both MPTC and SMC hold strategic infrastructure footprints across Luzon and the Visayas, their integration could redefine tollway development and policy dialogue with the government in the years ahead.
