The feasibility study for a proposed P4.7-billion container terminal in the Casiguran freeport of Aurora province will start this month, according to the Aurora Pacific Economic Zone and Freeport Authority (Apeco).

Yooshin Engineering Corporation will lead the updating of the 2011 Korean Export-Import Bank’s feasibility study covering technical, financial, environmental, and social aspects of the Casiguran International New Port, APECO president Atty. Gil Taway IV said.

Apeco signed three months ago a tripartite memorandum of agreement (MoA) with the South Korean company and the Philippines’ Lordsbridge Resources Corporation to develop the said container terminal.

Taway revealed in an interview on Tuesday that Yooshin have already conducted preliminary talks with potential funders, Korean banks and private equity firms.

Lordsbridge Resources, the developer and funding coordinator of the project, is now in the process of scouting for Korean funders, Taway said, adding that Apeco already submitted the master plan for the infrastructure.

“But other nationals (suppliers) can join for either bidding or a Swiss challenge for the project. It depends on the commercial arrangement, either a private-public partnership or a joint venture. And based on the timeline that they provided us, the bidding or Swiss challenge for the port project can be done in the entire 2026 to finalize. And by the last quarter of 2027, or the first quarter of 2028, they said construction of the port should commence,” Taway explained.

During the MoA signing last October 2025 at the Shangri-La Makati, Taway underscored that the overconcentration of ports in western Luzon has long created logistical bottlenecks, unequal growth and high transport costs that burden Philippine industries and communities.

Through the project, he said Apeco aims to correct the imbalance by developing Casiguran port into a resilient gateway that opens the Philippines directly to Pacific trade routes and drives inclusive development across the eastern corridor of Luzon.

For his part, Yooshin director and Philippine regional representative Jin Ho Lee maintained that their firm believes in Apeco’s vision to transform Casiguran into a strategic trade and logistics hub, and their participation in the project reflects their confidence in the agency’s leadership and in the Philippines’ capacity to build globally competitive infrastructure.

Apeco estimated that the port cost P4.7 billion to build. It will feature multipurpose berths, passenger and fishery wharves, and supporting facilities.