Semarang Ahmad Yani Airport Development project manager Tony Alam explained that the airport had been designed with a green concept in mind and would see a large increase in its capacity, as the air transport hub would sprawl out across 58,000 square meters, up from its original 6,000 sqm.

"One of the ways to save energy would be by using renewable energy; for example, the street lights will use solar power, water treatment will use the reverse osmosis process, water from surrounding waterways will be recycled for operational purposes," Tony said on Thursday, as quoted by tempo.co.

The upgraded airport is set to feature 13 apron areas, seven more than it currently has. The average space has been designed to accommodate the planes that commonly pass through the airport, including Boeing aircraft of the 737, 767 and 900 series, as well as larger planes.

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The airport would also have five aerobridges, Tony added. The two-level building, he said, would be decorated with modern facilities to serve six to seven million passengers a year. Previously, the airport could only facilitate 800,000 passengers.

The renovation work is carried out in four phases, with phases one and two set to conclude in October this year. Phase three is slated to finish by 2018, before the entire airport is expected to be completed by 2019.

Central Java Governor Ganjar Pranowo previously said the airport would have an artistic design to create the impression that it is floating on water and thereby suit its location close to the coast.

"The airport will almost seem to be floating," Ganjar said.

The budget for the ongoing renovations, he said, had reached almost Rp 2 billion. (liz/kes)