This article first appeared in The Edge Malaysia Weekly on December 16, 2024 - December 22, 2024

MORE states want to build their own international airports and seaports. 

Kedah has wanted an international airport in Kulim for a long time and has also expressed interest in building a seaport near Sanglang, which is on the border between the state and Perlis. Sarawak, which is in the midst of taking over MASwings Sdn Bhd from Malaysia Aviation Group Bhd, has similar plans in Kuching.

Meanwhile, Johor — which already has Port of Tanjung Pelepas (PTP) and Johor Port — intends to build more seaports.

This raises the question of whether the country needs that many airports and seaports. Furthermore, is there a national policy on such infrastructure that costs a huge sum?

Minister of Transport Anthony Loke Siew Fook says “anyone”, be it a state government or private party, can make a proposal to build an airport or seaport. More importantly, he does not see the need to stop any party from doing so simply because the infrastructure could be a catalyst for economic growth and further development.

Loke also says the federal government has no immediate plans to have a national policy on the development of airports and seaports. In his opinion, he does not see the need for one at the moment.

“We are not guided by any policy right now. During Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong’s time, he always quoted the National Airports Strategic Plan (NASP). There was a study on the NASP, but it was not going anywhere. Right now, we are not subject to that policy,” he says.

Wee served as transport minister from March 2020 to November 2022.

“I don’t think there is a strong requirement [for a policy] because first, not every state has the financial capability to build an airport. Probably the only state that can talk about building its own airport is Sarawak,” says Loke.

“At this point in our country’s development, to say that we should come out with a policy that says: ‘We will not build any more airports’, I don’t think it is fair. As far as aviation is concerned, I do not think we need to limit the number of airports,” he adds.

“If you look at other countries, there are hundreds of airports in the US. So I do not think there is a need right now to talk about limiting the number of airports [in the country].”

Loke says the Ministry of Transport (MoT) will consider all proposals from state governments and the private sector. For airports, however, he stresses that any proposal must meet the technical requirements and have the financial means to support the investment in airport infrastructure.

“Anybody can talk about airport development, but first they must pass all the technical requirements and [undergo] all the technical evaluations before an aerodrome operator licence is granted,” he tells The Edge when asked about the slew of proposals on new airports and seaports.

According to him, the Kedah government has officially applied for an aerodrome licence for the establishment of the Kulim International Airport.

“It [Kedah’s application] is being evaluated right now. But whether or not it is granted, it is subject to a technical evaluation, such as whether or not that particular place is suitable, whether it has enough traffic and can potentially generate enough income,” says Loke.

“As for Sarawak, it has a big aspiration to develop an aviation hub in the state, which from the federal government’s point of view, we cannot stop them from having that vision. Sarawak says it has the financial capability to fund the airport development itself. Right now, it is still in the conceptual stage,” he adds.

Loke dismisses concerns about the country having too many ports should all the proposals materialise. He deems the concern that container operations at Tanjung Langsat in southern Johor could potentially cannibalise PTP’s traffic as “far-fetched”.

“Every port is talking about expansion. We also should not deny the opportunities for some of the smaller states. As the transport minister, I have to look at every state. Our ports still have a lot of room for improvement and expansion,” he says.

Loke cites the example of Singapore’s Tuas Port that is currently undergoing expansion and will have the capacity to handle 65 million TEUs (20ft equivalent units) by 2040. In comparison, PTP — which is jointly owned by MMC Corp Bhd and Netherlands-based Maersk subsidiary APM Terminals — handles only 13 million TEUs of containers annually.

“Westports (Holdings Bhd) (KL:WPRTS) in Port Klang, even after its expansion, will be able to handle only 28 million TEUs when completed. So what cannibalisation [are you talking about]?

“If any private party wants to develop a port, by all means, come and apply. We have nothing against them. But you have to look at the condition. The reason why a private sector company chooses a location for a port. First, they have to look at the potential of the location. Is there any cargo to be transported there?”

Loke, member of parliament for Seremban, reveals MoT, in principle, has given the go-ahead for a RM2 billion container port to be built in Port Dickson, Negeri Sembilan.

“I come from Negeri Sembilan, so of course I support the state’s aspiration to build a port. Because by having a port, it also acts as a catalyst for industrial development in Port Dickson,” he says.

“There are a lot of oil palm estates in Port Dickson earmarked for industrial development. What’s more, the port is a private one. The government will not inject any capital into it.”

It was reported that the Negeri Sembilan government has agreed to alienate 33.6ha of seabed off Dickson Bay for the construction of the terminal.

Kedah Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor recently announced a proposal to build a port in Sanglang, Kubang Pasu, noting that the company behind the proposed project had submitted its proposal to MoT. Loke acknowledges that MoT has received the proposal, but says there is nothing firmed up yet.

Loke is confident that the aerotrain — which suffered a major breakdown on March 1, 2023 — at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) will be operational by late next month or early February. “Right now, it is undergoing user acceptance testing,” he says.

The minister notes that completion of the aerotrain system is only one of his checkboxes for KLIA, when asked what more Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB) (KL:AIRPORT) needs to do.

The items on his list are upgrading the baggage handling system, overall airport operations in terms of moving towards more digitalisation, optimising its commercial opportunities and improving the look-and-feel ambience of the airport.

On Capital A Bhd’s (KL:CAPITALA) past complaints about the different service levels at Terminal 1 and Terminal 2 of KLIA each time a hike in passenger service charges (PSC) is proposed, Loke says: “Well, I think users will never be satisfied. Everyone has the right to ask for better efficiency. Just like passengers of AirAsia will ask for better efficiency from the budget airline as well. It is the same cycle. AirAsia has the right to ask from MAHB [for better service] and the passengers have the right to ask AirAsia to improve its services as well. It is fair and square.

“What I do not want is for anyone to start pointing fingers at each other. You must work together. You need each other. Without the airport, the airlines cannot run. Without the airlines, the airport is nothing. So there is no point blaming each other and fighting in the public sphere. Probably the spat between MAHB and AirAsia is much lower right now.”

On the return of jets to Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport (Subang Airport) in Subang, Selangor, Loke says it is going according to plan but the jet operations are limited due to capacity and infrastructure constraints.

The minister wants the Subang Airport Regeneration Plan (SARP) to transform the airport into a premium city airport with a new terminal. Also, he believes that the revamp of Subang Airport will help grow the domestic aviation maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) industry.

The airport, which was limited to handling propeller-type aircraft after KLIA took over the role of international airport in 1998, saw the return of jets on its runway in August. The five airlines offering jet operations there are AirAsia, Firefly, Transnusa, Batik Air Malaysia and Scoot.

“This is just the interim phase where we resumed jet operations first without putting much additional infrastructure. Of course with the upgrading of major infrastructure surrounding the airport, most importantly the access road in and out of Subang Airport has to be developed. Without that, we cannot add more flights because of the congestion. That is the reason why we have only one [jet] flight per hour right now,” says Loke.

“We hope that MAHB will make a decision on the SARP development after its privatisation. Right now, they have put the decision on hold because of the exercise.”

Putrajaya approved the SARP in February, which is aimed at upgrading Subang Airport and the surrounding 477.33ha area into three major segments — business aviation, aerospace ecosystem and city airport.

The interim phase has the airport’s passenger capacity increased from 1.5 million passengers annually to three million. Subang Airport, however, will eventually be able to manage eight million passengers annually by 2030 under the SARP.

“As I have said before, Subang Airport is not going to replace KLIA. KLIA will remain the country’s major gateway, while Subang Airport will be a premium city airport. It caters more for the premium segment, regional destinations and private jets, which are a big business for aviation as it encompasses MRO,” Loke stresses.

“If more private jets come over here, then we will have the entire ecosystem. That will create a lot of spin-offs. Already there are a couple of companies providing MRO services in Subang such as Dassault Aviation’s MRO unit ExecuJet MRO Services Malaysia and Airbus Helicopters Malaysia.” 

Save by subscribing to us for your print and/or digital copy.

P/S: The Edge is also available on Apple's App Store and Android's Google Play.