Bali attracts foreign investors for its future airport in Buleleng

DENPASAR- Denpasar Ngurah Rai, Bali’s only international gateway, is living for a long time at the limit of complete saturation. The airport has a theoretical annual capacity for 8 million passengers but accommodates currently a total of over 13.5 million passengers a year. Before Bali APEC Summit planned next October, a brand new international terminal is due to open, which will boost  total capacity to 25 million passengers.

However, as the airport is experiencing on average about 12 to 15 percent passengers growth annually, the 25-million mark is likely to be reached before the end of the decade. Bali is equipped with a single runway which cannot be expanded due to environmental constraints over land reclamation (the airport is located close to the sea).
 
A site for the construction of a new airport has been identified for many years in the northern part of Bali in Buleleng Regency. On the sidelines of the Environmentally Sustainable Transport Forum in Nusa Dua hosted last Tuesday, the Minister of Transport E.E. Mangindaad told to media that the new airport is likely to attract the interest of many international visitors. Especially as perspectives of growth for air transport in Indonesia remain bullish.

Three locations have already been identified to build Bali second international airport with various preliminary feasibility studies being already published. The future airport will be built on an area comprising about 1,600 hectares of land yto be compared with Ngurah Rai total surface of 265 hectares… They are still negotiations to clear land to make way to the airport. But authorities remain optimistic that the airport construction could start by 2015 for a possible opening by 2020.

 “Interest toward the plan to establish the new airport has been shown by many investors from Japan, Korea, Germany and the UK. As long as the issue of land acquisition is fixed, I believe more investment interest will come,” indicated Transport Minister E. E. Mangindaan to the newspaper Jakarta Post.

Indonesia Director General of Air Transport Herry Bakti Gumay, acknowledged that currently, Indonesia had become a magnet for investments from the international aviation industry. “In terms of world aviation, all international eyes are currently set on this country because Indonesia provides promising business potential, which includes the construction of new airports, the operation of airlines, as well as the development of human resources,” indicated Herry to the Jakarta Post.

While Buleleng regency dreams to turn into Bali next major air gateway, expansion works continue at Ngurah Rai airport with the deadline on the APEC summit on October 1 to 8. Newspapers report that 68% of the project has already been completed while 90% of a new toll-road is now finished. The total number of workers has been increased from 1,200 to 1,600 to be sure that over 90% of the total work will be achieved already by early August. The development of the Bali current airport represents a total investment of US$ 288.4 million and is totally funded by state-owned airport managing company Angkasa Pura 1.

Sourced: TravelDailyNews