Beijing has given the go-ahead to Macao’s long-planned land reclamation project to expand the airport.
According to the Macao Civil Aviation Authority, the reclamation project involves reclaiming the coastal waters between the runway and the two taxiways to expand the capacity of the apron in order to build more aircraft stands and build fast lanes for taxiing; maintaining the present runway length of 3,360 metres but extending the runway end safety areas in order to meet the new safety standards of the International Civil Aviation Organisation; and creating a 95-metre-wide water channel between the runway and the apron.
The total land reclamation area will exceed 1.29 square kilometres. Once the project is completed, handling capacity at the airport, which opened in November 1995, will be raised to 15 million passengers per year close to doubling its current 7.8 million passengers per year capacity.
Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng said that the central government’s green light was an “encouraging step”, adding he “hoped that improvement to the airport infrastructure and the further opening-up of the [local] air transport market would facilitate the recovery and development of the aviation industry locally, and help create a more sustainable path for Macao’s civil aviation sector”.
Macao submitted a formal request in August 2021 to the central government concerning expansion of the airport and related land reclamation.
Due to the adverse impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, the airport only recorded 1.14 million passengers last year, The Macau Post Daily reported.
