MANILA - The opening of the New Manila International Airport in Bulacan may be delayed, as will the completion of the MRT-7, San Miguel Corp said on Tuesday.  

In a disclosure to the stock exchange following a newspaper report, San Miguel said it expects the construction of the Bulacan airport to be delayed "due to the lack of sand which is used as backfill for the ongoing construction work."

"The suspension by the Government of the Manila Bay reclamation projects has limited the sand sources of the Company. In the event the backfill and sand sources are made available to the Company, the NMIA may be operational by the first quarter of 2028," San Miguel said. 

Meanwhile, San Miguel also said completion of MRT-7 may be pushed back to 2028. 

The company said that partial operations of the MRT-7 would proceed next year, but the completion of the line up to San Jose del Monte, Bulacan, may be delayed up to 2028 as the local government of San Jose Del Monte pushes for a realignment of the line. 

"The local government of the Municipality of San Jose del Monte seeks to impose a realignment and relocation of the MRT Station and such issues have to be addressed and resolved," SMC said. 

The Department of Transportation earlier said the MRT-7's Quezon City portion, which consists of 12 stations, will be up and running towards the end of next year. The DOTr however was hoping that the MRT-7's San Jose Del Monte station would be completed by 2027.

San Miguel also clarified that it was in talks with Metro Pacific Investments Corp about a possible merger of their tollway operations, but there was still no definitive agreement on the terms and conditions of such a merger. 

SMC is set to take over the operations of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport in September.