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eputy Transportation Minister Bambang Susantono says that expansion projects for several major commercial airports across Indonesia will be completed by next year.

The projects include six airports operated by state owned airport operator Angkasa Pura I (AP I), such as Ngurah Rai International Airport in Bali; Sepinggan Airport in Balikpapan, East Kalimantan; and Juanda International Airport in Surabaya, East Java.

Also slated for completion are eight airports operated by Angkasa Pura II (AP II), including Sultan Syarif Kasim II Airport in Riau, Sultan Thaha Airport in Jambi, and Supadio Airport in Pontianak, West Kalimantan.

“We will see many airport expansion projects finish in 2013. Most of the projects have been underway since 2011. This surely will improve aviation services and help boost the regional economy,” Bambang said in Jakarta recently.

He said the number of passengers at 25 selected commercial airports in the country topped 125 million in 2011, up from 106 million in 2010. The figure is expected to reach 140 million by the end of the year.

According to AP I president director Tommy Soetomo, the company has spent Rp 6.4 trillion (US$665 million) to expand six of its 13 airports.

Tommy said that the firm spent almost Rp 2.7 trillion to increase the annual passenger capacity of Ngurah Rai from 9 million to 25 million passengers and for a new apron to accommodate up to 20 wide-bodied aircraft.

The face-lift for Ngurah Rai airport was important, according to Tommy, as Bali would host several high-profile international events next year, such as the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit, the Miss World 2013 competition and a World Trade Organization (WTO) meeting.

“We plan to finish the [Ngurah Rai’s] expansion by May 2013, as everything should be ready before the events,” Tommy said.

He also said that the firm had set aside Rp 80 billion for a terminal for private jet passengers at Ngurah Rai in cooperation with the Zurich-based ExecuJet Aviation Group.

AP II president director Tri Sunoko said that the company spent approximately Rp 3 trillion to expand its airports, excluding the country’s main gateway, Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Cengkareng, Banten.

“Our focus is on increasing the capacity of passenger terminals, including other supporting facilities, such as aprons and runways,” Tri said.

The firm is expanding the annual passenger capacity at Supadio Airport from 875,000 to 2.5 million, for example, while the capacity of Depati Amir Airport in Pangkal Pinang, Bangka Belitung, will be boosted from 350,000 to 1.3 million passengers.

Bambang added that Kuala Namu International Airport in Deli Serdang, North Sumatra, was set to commence operations in March 2013.

The new airport, with a total annual capacity of 8.1 million passengers, will replace Medan’s Polonia Airport, which has been operating over capacity.

“In Medan, the number of passengers has exceeded by sixfold the available capacity. To cope with this challenge, Angkasa Pura II has been working on Kuala Namu,” he said, adding that 85 percent of total construction has been finished.