The government majority-owned Macau International Airport will build an upstream cargo terminal in the Guangdong-Macau In-depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin, construction of which is slated to get off the ground in the first quarter of next year, airport operator CAM says.
A CAM statement on Monday said that the upstream cargo terminal in in Hengqin will assist the local government in enhancing Macau’s aviation logistics capabilities and promoting regional economic development.
The statement did not say when the project was expected to be completed.
A ceremony marking the project’s launch was held in Hengqin on Monday, according to the statement.
The statement noted that with the rapid development of e-commerce, the demand for air cargo transport has been increasing, adding that with the guidance of the Macau government and the support of the Hengqin authorities, local airport operator CAM, Macau International Airport Company Limited, started cooperation with COSCO SHIPPING Logistics & Supply Chain Management Company Limited, a subsidiary of China COSCO Shipping Corporation Limited, in September 2022.
The statement said that after an in-depth study, the two companies, namely CAM and COSCO SHIPPING Logistics & Supply Chain Management, decided to jointly invest in the establishment of a joint venture company, Guangdong Hengqin Macau International Airport Logistics Company Limited, adding that the two companies signed a strategic cooperation framework agreement in October 2023 on jointly building an upstream cargo terminal in Hengqin for the Macau International Airport.
The upcoming upstream cargo terminal project will be developed by the joint venture company, namely the Guangdong Hengqin Macau International Airport Logistics.
The statement also said that several other “key” agreements aiming to enable the upstream cargo terminal project to get off the ground were signed earlier this year, adding that after its first capital injection into the joint venture, CAM also signed a “four-party” agreement with three other entities, namely the executive committee of the Guangdong-Macau In-depth Cooperation Zone, COSCO SHIPPING Logistics & Supply Chain Management, and Guangdong Hengqin Macau International Airport Logistics.
The statement said that the joint venture, namely Guangdong Hengqin Macau International Airport Logistics, successfully bid for a 66,700-square-metre plot of land in Hengqin last month earmarked for the Macau International Airport’s upstream cargo terminal project, adding that the joint venture is aiming for the project to get off the ground in the first quarter of next year.
During Monday’s ceremony, according to the statement, a memorandum on construction and operation guarantee for Macau International Airport’s upstream cargo terminal project in Hengqin was also signed.
The deal was signed by António Lei Chi Wai, director of the Economic Development Bureau of the in-depth cooperation zone’s executive committee, Cheong Kok Kei, director of the executive committee’s Urban Planning and Construction Bureau, and Lei Si Tai, chairman of Guangdong Hengqin Macau International Airport Logistics.
The ceremony was attended by senior guests such as Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng, Secretary for Economy and Finance Lei Wai Nong, who also heads the in-depth cooperation zone’s executive committee, Macau Civil Aviation Authority (AACM) President Pun Wa Kin, and Simon Chan Weng Hong, the chairman of CAM’s executive committee.
According to the CAM website, the Macau Special Administrative Region (MSAR) government holds a 67.32 percent stake in the company. Former casino monopoly company STDM owns a 28.32 percent share, while the remaining shares are held by several mainland Chinese, Hong Kong and local investors.
This artist’s rendition released on Monday by local airport operator CAM shows its future upstream cargo terminal in Hengqin.
Witnessed by guests such as Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng (centre, back) and Secretary for Economy and Finance Lei Wai Nong (fourth from right, back), António Lei Chi Wai (from left to right, front), director of the Economic Development Bureau of the Guangdong-Macau In-depth Cooperation Zone’s executive committee, Lei Si Tai, chairman of Guangdong Hengqin Macau International Airport Logistics, and Cheong Kok Kei, director of the executive committee’s Urban Planning and Construction Bureau sign a memorandum on construction and operation guarantee for Macau International Airport’s upstream cargo terminal project in Hengqin on Monday. – Photo: CAM
