SENAI: Senai Airport Terminal Services Sdn Bhd (SATS) is targeting to achieve more than RM10bil in sales from the take-up of land and properties in Senai Airport City integrated development project.

Chief executive officer Datuk Mohd Sidik Shaik Othman said the company had spent over RM350mil upgrading facilities at Senai Airport since November 2003.

These include a complete refurbishment of the airport passenger terminal complex, extending the runway to accommodate wide-bodied aircraft, parking facilities and integrated air cargo terminal.

SATS, took over the operations of the airport opened in June 1974 from Malaysia Airport Holdings Bhd, it is the country's first and only privately owned and operated airport.

“The company will invest an additional RM2bil over the next 10 years on infrastructure and public amenities at the airport,'' Sidik said on Saturday.

He said this at the opening of the RM80mil Aero Mall - Malaysia's first stand-alone external airport shopping complex and the launch of the RM3.3bil Senai Airport City by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.

At the event, SATS also signed two memorandums of understanding with South Korea's STX Corp and Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM).

STX plans to invest RM1.5bil in Senai High Tech Park (SHTP) to produce solar cell modules while UTM will assist SHTP by providing expert consultation in various fields of its development plan.

Sidik said the integrated Senai Airport City project located next to Senai Airport spanning over 1,099 ha comprised three main components.

The residential, commercial and hospitality amenities are located on 264 ha, Free Zone Industrial and Logistics Park (FZIP) sits on 375ha and SHTP occupies 460ha.

“The hi-tech park will be partially operational in March next year and to date has received two investments of RM2.3bil,'' he said.

FZIP caters for the high-end manufacturing and technology-related industries in the aviation and logistics sectors and SHTP is the second hi-tech park in Malaysia after Kedah's Kulim Hi-Tech Park

Sidik said work on the hospitality precinct with two hotel blocks, a convention centre, offices and a factory outlet would start this year.

Also located at the precinct is the RM200mil regional wholesale centre to attract buyers from countries in the region - a joint venture project between SATS and Wenzhou Association of China.

“Senai Airport City will be the world's first integrated development project directly connected to an airport, whereas others are located several km away from the airport,'' said Sidik, adding that the project would take 10 years to complete.

Source: thestar online