After years of delays, inclusions and exclusions from the list of national projects, as well as a series of disputes over the location, the North Bali Airport construction project is back on track.
It should be noted that the construction of North Bali Airport in Buleleng was previously officially postponed. President Joko Widodo also excluded North Bali Airport from the list of national strategic projects.
Wayan Koster, while still the governor of Bali, stated that the construction of North Bali Airport was postponed because it required adequate supporting infrastructure. He wanted North Bali Airport to ultimately avoid the fate of several airports in Indonesia that were halted after opening due to lack of infrastructure.
However, several national media outlets have reported that the construction of North Bali Airport will soon resume. Panji Sakti Erwanto Sad Adiatmoko Hariwibowo, President Director of North Bali International Airport (BBC), also stated that the development project of North Bali Airport in Buleleng Regency, Bali, will continue after years of delay.
“Two weeks ago, I received information from the relevant ministry that the airport will be built soon. Well, for this, we as the initiators have received full support from the Balinese people to immediately start construction aiming for it to be operational by 2026,” he said, as reported by SMM Indonesia.
According to Panji, the construction of the airport in Buleleng Regency is necessary because the current Ngurah Rai Airport is overcrowded. He also cited an example: during the holiday season at the end of last year, there was a long traffic jam on the way to the airport, and passengers had to walk to the airport.
Incidentally, the resumption of this project was one of the campaign promises of the president-elect Prabowo Subianto.
The authorities’ goals for creating a second airport in Bali are as follows:
- To alleviate the main airport in southern Bali, which is already operating at full capacity and is expected to be overwhelmed by 2026.
- To develop the northern regions of Bali.
The construction of North Bali Airport is proposed in the Buleleng area, 40 minutes from Lovina and 90 minutes from the picturesque Amed.
BIBU Panji Sakti, the company behind the project, reports that “at the final stage, the airport is planned to be able to serve 50 million passengers.”
They confirmed that “this final selected location takes into account that the marine sites are safer for aircraft movement. Such a location also minimizes the consequences of resident displacement, does not interfere with the existence of temples and sacred sites, and does not impede productive land use.”
The developers have also committed to ensuring the use of as many environmentally friendly technologies as possible for power generation at North Bali Airport.
The plans explain: “A power plant will be built to meet the airport’s electricity needs. The selected power plant technology is environmentally friendly technology (Green Technology).”
However, not everyone is “happy” about the resumption of this project. Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy Sandiaga Uno also expressed a different opinion when asked by the media about the construction of North Bali Airport.
According to Sandiaga, they can first optimize existing airports. He said that Banyuwangi Airport in East Java can be optimized to increase the number of domestic tourist visits to Western Bali. Sandiaga stated that the average domestic tourist traveling through the airport is only 10 percent. Meanwhile, 80 percent of routes are land-based, and 10 percent are by sea.
Therefore, he urged the next government to study more deeply whether they want to build an airport in North Bali, namely in Buleleng Regency in Bali.
