KORAIL clinches Manila subway contract, eyes global railway expansion

Korea Railroad President & CEO Han Moon-hee, second from left, and San Miguel Corp. Chairman and CEO Ramon Ang, fourth from right, pose with other dignitaries after signing an agreement on the operation and maintenance of an urban railway in Manila, Tuesday. Courtesy of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport

Korea Railroad (KORAIL) signed a contract Tuesday with a Filipino company to operate and maintain a planned metro subway line in the Philippines, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.

The signing marks a significant step in the state-run Korean railway operator’s push to expand its global presence by leveraging advanced technology and operational expertise developed through its high-speed services, including the KTX, which connects cities nationwide, and GTX, which serves the greater Seoul area.

KORAIL President & CEO Han Moon-hee met with Ramon Ang, chairman and CEO of San Miguel Corp., in Manila to finalize the partnership for MRT-7, a metro line scheduled for completion and launch in the Filipino capital in December 2026. The 23-kilometer subway line will serve 14 stations across Metro Manila.

The two sides agreed that KORAIL will jointly operate the metro line with San Miguel and carry out maintenance work from July until December 2034. KORAIL will oversee a team of 28 experts, including local professionals, to handle subway control, service monitoring, station management and maintenance of train carriages and related facilities.

San Miguel put the 120 billion won ($84 million) project up for bidding and selected KORAIL last September. According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, KORAIL’s long-standing involvement in the project — providing consultation to the Filipino firm since 2016 — played a key role in securing the deal.

The signing came after Korean Transport Minister Park Sang-woo met Filipino Secretary of Transportation Vivencio Dizon in Manila in March to promote Korean railroad capabilities and express intent to strengthen the Southeast Asian country’s infrastructure in collaboration with Korean companies.

Korean Vice Minister for Transport Baek Won-kug, who is leading a delegation to Manila to promote cooperation in infrastructure and transportation industries, said that the latest contract constitutes a key milestone for Korea's "national one team" of government and private firms working together.

KORAIL signed a deal in February to supply 440 subway carriages worth 2.2 trillion won to Morocco and another deal in June 2024 to supply 42 high speed train carriages worth 270 billion won to Uzbekistan.

The company also visited the United Arab Emirates last week to support an Abu Dhabi-Dubai railway construction and high-speed train carriage supply bid tendered by state-run railway network operator Etihad Rail.