The Business Times
business-time-50
THE BROAD VIEW

Mega-airports and a plastic blizzard

Travellers need to be aware of the part they play in preserving – or destroying – the local environment. It’s not just about bared bottoms in sacred sites.

    • Potential white elephants in Asia include Indonesia’s US$7.3 billion “Whoosh” high speed rail, which was launched on Oct 2.
    • Potential white elephants in Asia include Indonesia’s US$7.3 billion “Whoosh” high speed rail, which was launched on Oct 2. PHOTO: AFP

    Vijay Verghese

    Published Fri, Oct 27, 2023 · 09:00 AM

    EVERYONE wants one. Now even tiny Siem Reap – home to Angkor’s majestic jungle-shrouded temples – has a big one.

    The Siem Reap-Angkor International Airport started operation on Oct 16, in one fell swoop catapulting the operation into the largest of its kind in Cambodia.

    Costing US$1.1 billion and financed by a Chinese state-owned company on a 55-year build-operate-transfer (BOT) lease, the new airport is 40 kilometres from the historic ruins. The old airport has been closed. The first phase of the opening allows for narrow-body flights and around seven million passengers annually while the second phase by 2030 will see the introduction of wide-body aircraft such as A350s and B777s with a capacity for 12 million visitors.

    Tourismsustainability

    TRENDING NOW

    GCash is one of the Philippines’ most widely used financial platforms, serving nearly 56% of the country’s adult population in the three months ended Jun 30.

    GCash parent Mynt rises in market debut after South-east Asia’s top 2026 IPO

    Universities see their role in equipping students with a foundation that can sustain them beyond their first job.

    In the age of AI, what is a university education for?

    Senior Minister K Shanmugam said that government agencies are considering legal, regulatory and economic measures to exert pressure on companies responsible for the haze.

    Singapore to use ‘every legal and regulatory lever’ against companies linked to haze: Shanmugam

    In Asia, KKR has larger portfolio allocations in Japan and India relative to other markets, though allocation trends shift every few years.

    ‘IPOs are not the only vehicle’: KKR heads for record exits even as firms stay private for longer

    Latest T-bills Treasury Bills Results & Interest NewsLatest SSB Singapore Savings Bonds NewsLatest COE Certificate of Entitlement News
    Latest Johor-Singapore SEZ NewsLatest BTO Build To Order & Sales of Balance NewsLatest STI Straits Times Index NewsLatest SGX Dividends, Share Price NewsLatest Bonds Market NewsLatest Singapore Stocks To Buy NewsLatest Singapore Economy News
    View More