Hai Phong wants to build another terminal in Cat Bi airport

The People's Committee of Hai Phong has proposed the construction of the second passenger terminal  in Cat Bi International Airport in the form of public private partnership in combination with other forms of investment.

According to the Hai Phong Portal, this proposal was submitted to the Government Office, ministries and agencies to ask for the Prime Minister's permission for the committee to carry out the project.

Earlier, at the meeting with leaders of Hai Phong on June 26, 2017, the prime minister agreed with the construction of the passenger terminal 2. Also, the Ministry of Transport was assigned to expeditiously complete the adjustment masterplan for Cat Bi International Airport and coordinate with Haiphong city in proposing plans on the investment and the use of non-state budget capital.

Cat Bi is an international air gateway that plays an important role in the socio-economic development strategy of Hai Phong and the Northern Coast of Vietnam.

Over the past years, the number of passengers in Cat Bi international Airport has increased significantly. In the period from 2013 to 2017, the average number of passengers rose by 26.8 per cent and the cargo output increased by 20 per cent.

Only in 2017, the airport welcomed 2.3 million passengers, nearly 29 per cent higher than in 2016. This figure is expected to continue to grow steadily at a high level in the coming years as airlines have plans to expand the flight network and increase the frequency of existing routes to and from Cat Bi.

It is estimated that Cat Bi International Airport will serve about 4.5 - 5 million passengers a year by 2020. The figure for 2025 is expected to reach about 8 - 8.5 million passengers.

In fact, the number of passengers passing through Cat Bi International Airport is growing rapidly, reaching its critical capacity in 2017. Therefore, the construction of passenger terminal 2 that could be operated at the beginning of 2020 is very necessary and urgent.

The Ministry of Transport has assigned the Airports Corporation of Vietnam (ACV) and Vietjet Aviation JSC to propose plans to upgrade Cat Bi airport.

Under the proposal of Vietjet, the second passenger terminal serving both international and domestic passengers has the capacity of 8 - 10 million passengers per year, of which the design capacity of the first phase is 5 million passengers per year.