MIRI: Miri Airport will undergo a RM445 million expansion under the 13th Malaysia Plan, doubling passenger capacity and strengthening the northern Sarawak city’s role as a regional aviation and tourism hub.
The project, approved under Rolling Plan 1 of the 13th Malaysia Plan (13MP), will see the airport terminal upgraded into a two-storey facility capable of handling four million passengers annually, up from its current capacity of two million.
Miri Member of Parliament and Deputy Minister for Tourism, Arts and Culture Chiew Choon Man said the allocation represented a significant increase from the RM150 million previously announced for airport upgrading works under the 2024 and 2025 federal budgets.
He said passenger traffic at Miri Airport had already exceeded its intended capacity before the COVID-19 pandemic and continued to grow following the recovery of the aviation sector.
Ranked as Malaysia’s sixth busiest airport and the second busiest in Sarawak, Miri Airport serves as a key gateway to northern Sarawak and neighbouring Brunei-linked regions.
Under the proposed expansion, six additional Passenger Boarding Bridges (PBBs) will be added, bringing the total number to nine. The airport will also be equipped with automated and self-service check-in and departure systems in line with International Air Transport Association (IATA) standards.
Operational and infrastructure improvements will also be carried out to meet International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) requirements for international airports.
Chiew said he had repeatedly raised the need for airport expansion through parliamentary debates and engagements with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, the Economy Ministry and the Transport Ministry, arguing that infrastructure investment here would strengthen long-term economic growth in northern Sarawak.
He said a larger airport with improved facilities would help attract additional domestic and international flights, supporting tourism, trade, hospitality and related industries.
At present, Miri has one international air connection to Singapore. However, the airport is already capable of handling aircraft commonly used for medium-haul international routes, including the Airbus A320neo and Boeing 737 MAX.
Chiew said the upgraded airport could strengthen efforts to attract more international services in future, including routes within the wider East Asian region.
The airport expansion forms part of broader efforts to improve connectivity and infrastructure here, which federal and state leaders have increasingly promoted as an economic and tourism gateway for northern Sarawak.
Chiew also called for the tender process to be expedited to allow construction works to begin as soon as possible, saying residents had waited years for the airport upgrade.
The project is expected to be implemented during the 13th Malaysia Plan period.
