Cost of new Senate building to reach P31B – Escudero

MANILA, Philippines — The new Senate building in Taguig City is expected to cost less than P31 billion, according to Senate President Francis Escudero.

“There is no final amount yet but it will be less than P31 billion,” he said at a press briefing on Wednesday.

Escudero earlier said that they are setting a price cap that includes the acquisition cost of the land where the building is being built.

“They’re finalizing the costing of the project ... the ceiling amount from the time they began building it. The cost should not exceed that. It can be lower but definitely the amount should not exceed the ceiling amount,” he said in a previous interview.

READ: Escudero wants P23-billion new Senate building reviewed: Parang OA

December 2026 transfer eyed

He said the earliest time they could transfer to the new building was December 2026.

“Additional parking is being built, entangled wires are being fixed, security arrangement is being set up, etc.,” the Senate leader said.

Based on the latest report of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) in the Senate last year, the estimated building cost has reached P31.6 billion, excluding the payment for the parcel of land and furniture.

Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano earlier said the price tag of, and the timeline for, the completion of the new Senate building are both “unacceptable.”

The cost of the project was one of the issues that became contentious between Cayetano and Sen. Nancy Binay, the former head of the accounts committee.

Cayetano launched an inquiry on July 3, 2024, upon the order of Escudero, citing the surge in the building’s price tag from P8.9 billion to P23.3 billion.

Binay, however, maintained that the building’s cost was P21 billion at that time.

The DPWH later confirmed that the total estimated cost could reach P27 billion, with inflation and the current prices of construction materials factored in.

(2025/02/20-05:42)