Cambodia opens new international airport

Phnom Penh, October 21 - Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet opened the airport in the capital Phnom Penh at a ceremony. The new $2 billion air port is expected to attract tourists and foreign investors to the Cambodian capital, the AP reported.

Techo International Airport, with three runways, will replace the nearly 70-year-old Phnom Penh International Airport, which has one runway. The complex began operations in September but was officially opened this week. The Cambodian government invested in the construction together with local investment group OCIC.

The new transport hub is expected to be able to handle 13 million passengers a year in its first years of operation, after 2030 its capacity should increase to 30 million and up to 50 million passengers a year by 2050. The Cambodian prime minister said that his country expects the new airport to bring in even more tourists than before the Covid-19 pandemic.

According to the prime minister, Cambodia attracted about four million foreign tourists in the first eight months of this year, compared to 6.7 million tourists last year. Tourism in the country has begun to recover after the pandemic, but it was also negatively affected by this year's five-day conflict with Thailand. Although the two countries have signed a ceasefire, tensions in the region remain high, according to the AP.

Cambodia has opened its second airport in two years. The Chinese-funded airport, located near the Angkor Wat temple complex, the Asian country's main tourist attraction, opened in November 2023.

AP | Czech press agency | WT.24