1.Purpose & Need

Macau International Airport commenced its operation in 1995. With these years of operation and development, the airport has proved that Macao is an important gateway to the world by providing a significant platform for the mobility of people, passengers and services to and from Macao.

Facing the rapid increase in our tourism growth and the change in the passenger structure of our industry, as well as coping with the integration of the new road transport network into that of the Pearl River Delta Region, our airport facilities must be greatly enhanced to meet the air transport demand resulting from the changes taking place in the environment, the society and the economy. For this reason, we launched the project to formulate the Macau International Airport Master Plan in 2010.

Throughout the drafting process, we have held a number of consultation meetings to solicit views and opinions from the government bodies relating to the construction of the transport network, the industry operators as well as the associations and organizations relating to the aviation sector, the tourism sector, the cargo logistics sector and so on. The draft report was concluded in 2011.

Later CAM-Macau International Airport Co. Ltd. (or the airport concessionaire) submitted their request to the SAR Government to construct a new business aviation hangar; in addition, their financial situation was greatly improved by the issuance of redeemable preference shares to the company shareholders in June 2012 to pay the long term bank loans.

In view of the above change in the financial status of the airport concessionaire and the constant changes taking place in the economy of the surrounding areas, we worked on the renewal of the report and consulted the industry partners once again on the new draft. The renewal was concluded in the fourth quarter of 2015.

2. Traffic Forecasts

In projecting the traffic forecasts, we have followed our scientific approach in a strict manner by systematically analyzing the data that affect traffic, namely Macao’s population growth, the economic growth of Macao and West Zhuhai, Macao’s tourism development trend, strategic development of airlines, route development, Macao’s road transport network development and so on as the fundamentals in forecasting. We have also taken into analysis the actual traffic volume of the airport in 2014 to work out the projection on the increase of public air transportation as well as that of the general aviation in the coming 25 years. The high scenario, the baseline scenario and the low scenario show the traffic projection to be:

-reaching 7M passengers between 2017 to 2019

-reaching 11M passengers between 2025 to 2037

-reaching 15M passengers between 2033 to 2040

3.Airport Planning

Macau International Airport aims to serve the local market and the Pearl River Delta Region market, meeting the different needs of the passengers and the airport operators. With the continual growth in the passenger volume year to year, some of the airport facilities will become saturated very soon and therefore no longer meeting the demand and affecting the service quality. Given this fact, it is necessary to assess the need for new facilities in different phases according to the traffic forecasts and plan ahead in a scientific way.

With the maximum capacity of handling 15M passengers as the target, we devised four airport development alternatives based on different concepts. Each alternative has its advantages. Together with our consultation partners we have assessed the four alternatives taking the following factors for priority consideration: whether the planning for the connections between the airport and the other ports can cope with the Pac On transport hub, whether the planning can maximize the function of the sea-road-air links, whether the planning can enhance the convenience in the transport of passengers, and whether the planning can help to increase the passenger volume for the airport and boost the business aviation. After careful analysis, the alternative which is presently adopted by us is widely accepted to best fulfill the above requirements and is the most feasible one. We also agree that this alternative can meet the operational efficiency, allow the airport to expandin gradual phases and will not cause a big impact on the operation of the airport during construction.

The airport will expand gradually in three phases. The capacity for each phase can be seen in the following table. When the first phase is done, the airport will be able to handle 7M passengers per year; when the second phase is completed, the airport will be able to handle 11M passengers per year; and when the final phase is concluded, the handling capacity will be increased to 15M passengers per year. The construction for each phase will commence when it is timely to do so.

In fact, in accordance with the current airport operations, some facilities are currently saturated, for example, the general aviation facilities, the passenger terminal and the road transport facilities; the other facilities such as the apron also need to be expanded. Presently, our airport is composed of the artificial island with the runway, the apron, the passenger terminal, and the two taxiways connecting the artificial island and the apron. There is no appropriate land that can be used for expansion. The surrounding area of the airport also lacks sufficient land. It is therefore our plan to reclaim the water area between the two taxiways and the surrounding water area to create conditions for the sustainable development of the airport.

The first phase will focus on renewing or expanding the current facilities and carrying out land reclamation to prepare for the future development.

Layout of different phases

Existing layout

Phase 1

Phase 2

Final Phase

4.Follow-up Work

In 2017, the SAR Government will apply to the Central Government for land reclamation in the water area between the two taxiways that link the artificial island and the apron, as well as the surrounding water area.

In accordance with the Master Plan, the airport concessionaire will devise their business plan to detail how they will implement the project and arrange the relevant financing.

Source from AACM – Civil Aviation Authority of Macau