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Transport ministry: Penang International Airport will be expanded to accommodate 20 million passengers

Penang International Airport will be undergoing renovations to cope with the influx of the tourists entering the island. — Picture by Sayuti Zainudin
Penang International Airport will be undergoing renovations to cope with the influx of the tourists entering the island. — Picture by Sayuti Zainudin

GEORGE TOWN, Oct 21 — The Penang International Airport (PIA) will eventually be expanded to accommodate 20 million passengers per year, according to a reply by the Transport Ministry in Parliament.

The ministry announced that the PIA will first be expanded to accommodate 12 million passengers under the first phase of the expansion project.

“The implementation of the first stage of the second phase will increase the capacity to 16 million passengers while the second stage of expansion will increase the capacity to 20 million passengers per annum,” it said.

The ministry added that the government is still in the process of planning the expansion works for the second phase which involved land acquisition.

Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow issued a statement today, based on the parliamentary reply, that the state will extend its full cooperation in the implementation of the expansion project.

“We hope that the implementation of the expansion project will be in accordance with the timeline fixed as the PIA expansion project is very much needed now,” he said.

The ministry also reiterated that the Malaysia Airport Holdings Berhad (MAHB) had already appointed a consultant on February 15 this year through an open tender to prepare a detailed design for the project.

It said the expansion project is scheduled to start in June 2020 and that it will take three years to complete.

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