What impact will the proposed Kulim airport have on Penang?
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00:00 The Minister of Transport said there had not been any formal proposal to the Ministry and
00:14 all that.
00:16 But looking at the debate, the original intention for Kulim Airport is just a cargo airport.
00:29 The question is whether you need a cargo airport at this moment because there is still excess
00:41 capacity for cargo in Bayang Lepas.
00:50 So that is their intention.
00:53 But do you build an airport just for cargo?
00:56 I don't think it is tenable, just to build a cargo airport.
01:06 Penang can easily play that role and we have also the Penang port as well.
01:13 But definitely if Kulim is built, it will have some impact on Penang as well.
01:27 One of the reasons people want to be in a certain location is because of infrastructure
01:33 maturity, like airport, seaport, road, electricity, water supply as well.
01:42 So another airport just next to us.
01:46 I mean, investors will have a better choice, they can choose where to go.
01:53 But having two airports needs further study by the relevant transport agencies to ascertain
02:01 whether it is still needed.
02:03 But anyway, just what I have said has become academic in the sense that the plan has been
02:12 shelved I think.
02:15 And Penang airport will be expanded and that would enable us to bring Penang airport into
02:31 another 10-20 years.
02:35 If expansion can still be undertaken over the years, we definitely would be able to
02:42 cater to a bigger number of passengers, even up to 20 million passengers per year.
02:49 At the moment, this airport can only cater to 6.5 million.
02:55 And even before COVID, we are receiving 8 million already.
02:58 It is definitely insufficient to meet with the passengers' load.
03:07 So the talk about expansion plan would be able to cater up to 12, but 12 can easily
03:15 be surpassed very soon.
03:17 So maybe Malaysian airport holdings perhaps must look beyond 12 million, maybe 16 million
03:26 and then eventually 20 million capacity.
03:30 But again, it is a federal project and on our part, we definitely want it to happen.
03:37 Not today, not tomorrow, but yesterday.
03:41 Because the numbers show that even before pandemic, we have already surpassed the numbers
03:49 that can comfortably serve the passengers.
03:56 Thank you.
03:56 [END]