Government studies new airport for Jakarta
Indonesian Government is considering the construction of a new airport near Jakarta to accommodate forecasted passenger growth in the country (Reuters, 07-Jan-2011). The government is also looking at boosting the capacity of the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, currently serving approximately 35 million passengers p/a. Director general for air transport at the transport ministry, Herry Bakti, stated passenger growth each year is approximately 15-20%. Mr Bakti said "we plan for multiple airports in the Jakarta metropolitan area," adding a study on the issue will be completed by the end of 2011. The government asked the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) to conduct a visibility study exploring the main airport's expansion and to develop new facilities. Indonesia and Japan signed a deal in Dec-2010 in which Japan will fund transport infrastructure projects worth USD24 billion around Jakarta, while other Asian nations and private equity firms are eyeing infrastructure.