Govt approves plan to build new airport for Phnom Penh

According to a document from the Council of Ministers, dated December 21, the Cambodian government has approved an investment proposal from Cambodian Airport Investment Co Ltd (CAI) to build a $1.5bn, 2,600- hectare airport in Kandal province’s Kandal Steung district, about 30 kilometer south of Phnom Penh. CAI is a joint venture between local conglomerate Overseas Cambodia Investment Corporation (OCIC) and the Cambodian government’s State Secretariat of Civil Aviation (SSCA), the document said. Unspecified “foreign banks” will provide $1.1bn in funding, while OCIC will invest $280mn and will own 90% shares in the completed airport, with the rest going to SSCA. However, the project is just getting off the ground, according to OCIC and government officials. Sin Chansereyvutha, a spokesman for the SSCA, said there was no detailed plan or agreement yet. Nget Chou, a senior consultant at Emerging Markets Consulting, said he was suspicious a project requiring so much capital would materialize, and even if it did, its proximity to Phnom Penh would not accommodate the long-term trend of rapid urban expansion. (Source: Phnom Penh Post)