Complete delivery of all the Precinct Count Optical Scan (PCOS) machines that will be used in the May 10 polls is expected before February 14.

“They are saying before the Chinese New Year, which is February 14, all will be in. All the 82, 200 machines will be complete by then,” Commission on Elections (Comelec) Commissioner Rene Sarmiento told reporters.

The poll official was referring to Smartmatic-TIM, the consortium who won the P11.3-billion poll automation contract.

He said that at present, 32,000 PCOS machines are already here in the country and stored at a warehouse in Cabuyao, Laguna.

“32,000 (PCOS) are already here. The remaining 50,000 balance are already in the shipping lines ready for shipment to the Philippines,” said Sarmiento.

Based on the original schedule, Smartmatic-TIM Corporation was supposed to deliver 42,000 PCOS last December while the other 40,000 should come by February.

But the Comelec cited the heavy sea traffic during the holiday season as the reason Smartmatic-TIM failed to meet the original number of machines expected.