Klia Aeropolis Air Cargo & Logistics Cluster Development Expected to Generate Rm1.6 Billion in Gdp and Create 6,000 Jobs by 2021

SEPANG - KLIA Aeropolis Air Cargo & Logistics development cluster is expected to generate RM1.6 billion in GDP and create 6,000 jobs within the next three to four years. This was mentioned by Malaysia Airports managing director Datuk Badlisham Ghazali during a press conference at Malaysia Airports Corporate Office held in conjunction with a site visit by the Minister of International Trade and Industry YB Dato’ Sri Mustapa Mohamed to KLIA Air Cargo Terminal 1 (KACT1) earlier today. KACT1 is located within KLIA Aeropolis’ Air Cargo & Logistics cluster development and currently houses the e-commerce regional distribution centre for Pos Malaysia and Lazada. 

During the site visit, Dato’ Sri Mustapa was also briefed on the development plans for KLIA Aeropolis. The KLIA Aeropolis Masterplan focuses on three key clusters, one of which is Air Cargo & Logistics. According to Badlisham, for the past several years, Malaysia Airports has been developing initiatives and actively engaging with key players to position KLIA Aeropolis as an e-commerce hub. With nearly 20 of the world’s top 25 freight forwarders already operating in KL International Airport (KLIA) and more than 60% of the current cargo volume carried by home-based carriers, it is poised to capture the huge potential growth in the e-commerce segment. It is expected that e-commerce in South East Asia will grow by 16 times its current volume by 2025, reaching an estimated USD88 billion. 

 “Our decision to convert the former low-cost carrier terminal (LCCT) to KACT1 has provided the capacity for the expected increase in cargo traffic. In fact, this has served as an impetus for Cainiao Network – the logistics arm of the Alibaba group – to form a joint venture with us in developing KLIA Aeropolis DFTZ Park, the world’s first e-world trade platform (eWTP) outside of China. Work progress is on track for site handover in August 2018 to the joint venture company for facilities development. The facility will be fully operational in 2020,” he added. 

The facility will encompass 1.2 million sq ft gross floor area (GFA) for a cargo terminal, sorting centre, warehouse and operations office. An expected RM800 million will be invested into its infrastructure, facilities, systems and equipment. DFTZ is expected to more than double KLIA’s cargo volume to 1.5 million tonnes in the next ten years. 
 
Further to the 60-acre KLIA Aeropolis DFTZ Park, Malaysia Airports is also looking to develop another 1 million sq ft of GFA for cargo facilities within the next three years. The company is looking to team up with potential strategic delivery partners to develop high-grade warehousing and distribution centres on a build and lease model that are able to cater to specialised needs such as halal logistics, high-value goods and pharmaceuticals. They will be working in collaboration with the DFTZ Investment Promotion Task Force to attract investments from global giant e-commerce players, forwarders and integrators, as well as specialised logistics players. 

Other infrastructure developments will also include a free commercial zone corridor to cater to business expansion growth, an airport cargo freight station to support intermodal connectivity to seaports and the utilisation of big data analytics to improve operational efficiency.
 
Malaysia Airports has also embarked on a strategic collaboration with MARA Corporation to provide human capital solutions and address potential challenges by the future tenants of KLIA Aeropolis. This is a value added business facilitation service that will help ensure that manpower requirements are matched to operational activities. 
 
Badlisham added further, “In formulating our five-year business plan two years ago, we ensured that we made full use of our ready advantages – the government’s foresight in providing us with a 100-sq km land bank surrounding KLIA has enabled us to put in place a comprehensive development plan for the airport city. We will continue banking on KLIA’s strong position as a regional gateway for ASEAN and Oceania, as well as growing our connectivity further. We are also grateful for the continuous government support and collaboration that have enabled us to progress as an economic enabler for the country.”