Penang infrastructure and transport committee chairman Zairil Khir Johari said this was necessary as the government seemed to have given the green light for the Kulim airport to be built.
He said the study should be put on hold for urgently needed expansion work to be carried out on the Penang International Airport.
Zairil was referring to the National Airports Strategic Plan (NASP) announced by the transport ministry last year. It said all airport upgrades or work on new airports would be put on hold until the study was completed in 2023.
He said that with work on the Kulim airport appearing to be carrying on unfettered, many questions had been raised by travellers and industries in Penang.
“Is the Kulim airport project sanctioned and approved by the federal government although all airport projects have been put on hold pending the NASP?” he asked in a statement today.
“If work on the Kulim airport does continue, what impact would it have on the expansion of the Penang airport? This airport is Malaysia Airports’ ‘golden goose’ in terms of both passenger arrivals and cargo.”
Zairil said the Penang airport was one of the most profitable airports in the country for Malaysia Airports before the pandemic, and was expected to resume normal operations once borders were reopened.
“With vaccination rates increasing and the economic sector gradually opening up, it will not be long before the airport achieves its previous levels in passenger numbers.
“Therefore, would it not be prudent to begin construction of the expansion now when the airport is virtually empty in preparation for the future?”
Kedah plans to build a new airport on the southeast reaches of Sungai Petani to be called the Kulim International Airport. It is anticipated to have the capacity to handle 15 million passengers per annum (mppa) by 2024.
Kedah menteri besar Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor had previously said the Kulim airport would be put on a fast track “as promised” by the transport ministry despite the NASP.
Transport minister Wee Ka Siong later said the project had been approved by the government “in principle”.
The Penang airport was supposed to have been upgraded from handling 6.5mppa to 12mppa in 2020, but the plan was shelved after a new government came in in February that year.
The airport handled 8.3mppa in 2019.