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tate-owned airport operator PT Angkasa Pura II (AP II) has secured a Rp 1.5 trillion (US$128 million) loan from PT Bank Internasional Indonesia (BII) to help in the expansion of the country'€™s main gateway, Soekarno-Hatta International Airport.

AP II president director Tri S. Sunoko and BII president director Taswin Zakaria signed the loan facilitation at AP II headquarters in Cengkareng, Banten, on Monday.

Tri said the loan would help the firm to finish the expansion of Soekarno-Hatta'€™s Terminal 3, which is expected to become the most modern terminal in the country.

'€œAfter selecting a number of banks, we saw BII as the only one that was able to accommodate our demands. We believe that the bank will help us to smooth out our massive Soekarno-Hatta expansion project,'€ Tri said in a statement made available to The Jakarta Post on Monday.

AP II earmarked Rp 26.2 trillion to develop Soekarno-Hatta between 2010 and 2016, with Rp 11.1 trillion allocated for this year.

The operator also aims to complete the expansion of the third terminal, to accommodate 25 million passengers annually, next year.

Upon completing the Terminal 3 project at the end of 2015, Tri said the company would upgrade terminals 1 and 2 at the airport, including an integrated building connecting both terminals.

The integrated building would comprise facilities such as commercial areas, hotels and a train station, as well as an automated people-mover system to transport passengers within the airport.

The face-lift project is expected to be finished by 2020, increasing the airport'€™s total annual capacity to 61 million passengers, from the current 22 million passengers.

'€œThe loan facility shows our commitment to supporting the government in spurring infrastructure development in the country. Soekarno-Hatta has a strategic role in supporting Indonesia'€™s connectivity and tourism, which contribute significantly to the nation'€™s economy,'€ Taswin said.

AP II plans to revitalize the first terminal at Soekarno-Hatta by expanding it to 204,445 square meters by 2017 from the current 144,635 square meters to accommodate 18 million passengers annually.

The second terminal will also be expanded from its current 154,936 square meters, with capacity of 9 million passengers a year, to 168,546 square meters to accommodate 19 million passengers in 2016.

In the meantime,

Deputy Transportation Minister Bambang Susantono has previously said that the relocation of commercial flights to Halim Perdanakusuma Airport in East Jakarta earlier this year, as well as an improved navigation system, would help ease congestion at the airport.

'€œSoekarno-Hatta has been better this year with the relocation of commercial flights to Halim,'€ Bambang said, adding that the airport'€™s two runways would see capacity increase as of June 15, when the airport would serve 72 flights per hour, from the current 64, following its improved navigation system.

'€œWith the increased number of flights per hour, the airport can accommodate flights relocated to Halim. Therefore, Soekarno-Hatta will definitely get better this year,'€ he said.

AP II currently manages 13 airports in the western part of Indonesia, including Kuala Namu International Airport in North Sumatra, Raja Haji Fisabilillah Airport in Riau Islands, Minangkabau International Airport in West Sumatra, Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II Airport in South Sumatra and Husein Sastranegara International Airport in West Java. (nfo)