There seems to be a lot of confusion about a proposed bridge that aims to connect the larger Panay Island to its very popular little sibling: Boracay.

Yes, there’s a bridge that was proposed by San Miguel Holdings Corporation (SMHC), headed by San Miguel Corporation’s Ramon S. Ang (RSA), that will span the gap between Caticlan and Boracay Island, allowing vehicles to cross from Panay to Boracay. As you can already infer, there has been a lot of pushback on the project for various reasons, and recently, the chief executive of Aklan, Governor Miraflores, made a statement that indicated RSA and SMHC have backed out of the project.

The Boracay Bridge had been proposed in 2024, but has already been the target of stakeholders in the area who see it as a threat to their livelihood; one such group would be boat operators who remain the only means to get on and off the tourist island. Environmentalists also oppose the project for the impact the construction will have on the waterway and surrounding areas. There’s also the fact that it will be a limited-access road; that means it will be a toll road. 

The proponent of the project, SMHC, however, indicates that the Boracay bridge PPP will bring a lot of benefits to tourism and the day-to-day operations of the island. The idea was an unsolicited proposal by RSA’s SMHC to the government, and it sought to provide a proper land bridge that would grant greater accessibility to and from Boracay. In their proposal, SMHC said the bridge would provide public transport access, pedestrian lanes, bikeways, provision of carriage for utility lines (power, telecommunication, water supply, sewerage), and enable the transport of solid waste and cargo. Currently, the only way to do any of those things is by boat. 

Well, after the Governor’s statement, it seems RSA is weighing in: He says SMHC is not backing out of the project.

"I don't know why they said that," said Ang in a statement to Bilyonaryo.

In a statement released to the media, RSA says that the value that can be brought by the Boracay bridge is designed as a controlled-access link that will support tourism while improving the movement of essential goods, waste, utilities, emergency services, and regulated transport between Caticlan and Boracay. What they are doing instead is taking more time to evaluate how to address concerns over the impact of the project on the community, the individual and collective stakeholders, as well as the environment. 

SMC has issued an official clarification on this matter.