North Sumatra Relys On Kualanamu Airport To Drive Economic Growth

Kualanamu Airport. (Photo: Doc. Antara)

JAKARTA - PT Angkasa Pura II (Persero) is developing Kualanamu Airport (Deli Serdang) to become one of the engines of economic growth in North Sumatra by involving domestic and foreign investors.

"Kualanamu Airport is one of the infrastructures to support Sumatra, especially North Sumatra, as a mainstay destination for industry, business and tourism. Kualanamu Airport is also in a strategic position to become an international transit airport. This airport will be an engine of economic growth in North Sumatra", said AP II President Director Muhammad Awaluddin in his statement, quoted from Antara, Wednesday, September 15.

A number of developments will be carried out in the Kualanamu Airport area which has a total area of 1.365 hectares. Meanwhile, in optimizing its assets, the airport applies the Asset Recycling Initiative policy.

"Through the Asset Recycling Initiative, AP II's assets will be managed by subsidiaries by implementing a business-to-business pattern such as leases, concessions, and revenue sharing. Thus, the subsidiary's contribution will not only come from dividends but also direct income contributions to the parent", he said.

In line with this, AP II's assets at Kualanamu Airport will be managed by the company's subsidiary, PT Angkasa Pura Aviasi (APA).

He continued, On September 16, 2021, AP II together with PT Angkasa Pura Aviasi (APA) and the Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) held an assessment of market interest (market sounding) to introduce 3 development projects for the Kualanamu Airport area to potential investors.

The three development projects are Airport City, which will be built on an area of 135 hectares consisting of a hotel, convention hall, golf course & driving range, theme park, retail and hospital.

The existence of this Airport City is projected to accommodate the needs of three main locations, namely Medan, Belawan (logistics center), and Tanjung Morawa (industrial zone).

Then the commercial area will stand on a 20-hectare land and be used for factory outlets to meet the needs of tourists and also the needs of Medan as the largest economic center in Sumatra.

A special e-commerce warehouse will be built on an area of 2 hectares. The existence of this special warehousing will accommodate the needs as the e-commerce market in Indonesia expands.

Meanwhile, the Director of PT Angkasa Pura Aviasi Haris said that the market sounding will be attended by potential investors and consultants from within the country and from abroad.

"Market sounding is the initial stage to introduce a development project and to officially obtain a letter of intent (LoI) from potential investors. Then, the next stage is the bidding process, determining the winner, and signing the contract", said Haris.

Haris revealed that the location of Kualanamu Airport, which is quite close to Medan, which is about 39 km, has become an attraction for potential investors to develop an economic center in the airport area.

"Access to Kualanamu Airport is currently also supported by various alternatives, ranging from the Medan-Kualanamu-Tebing Tinggi toll road to access by Railink airport train with travel time from the airport to Medan city center only about 30 minutes", he said.

He explained that Kualanamu Airport currently has a passenger terminal capacity of 9 million people per year, and has a 4-star status from Skytrax, which means this airport is able to provide good quality in terms of service. The highest rating from Skytrax itself is 5 Stars.

Meanwhile, PT Angkasa Pura Aviasi is currently also in the stage of looking for strategic partners to become partners in managing and developing Kualanamu Airport. Strategic partners will later become shareholders of a maximum of 49 percent in PT Angkasa Pura Aviasi, while 51 percent of the shares will be controlled by AP II.

"On the one hand, strategic partners are being selected to become shareholders in PT Angkasa Pura Aviasi, and on the other hand PT Angkasa Pura Aviasi is also looking for investors for the Kualanamu Airport area development project", he explained.

Haris added that the development model at Kualanamu Airport will benefit and accelerate airport capacity building by involving the private sector, in order to realize 3E, namely Expansion The Traffic, Expertise Sharing, and Equity Partnership.

Kualanamu Airport is projected to be able to serve 44 million aircraft passenger movements per year and facilitate cargo transportation of up to 292.000 tons per year.