N. Sulawesi displays ambitious port plans<\/p>\n
MANADO, North Sulawesi (JP): President Abdurrahman Wahid is
\nslated to officially open the renovated International Airport of
\nSam Ratulangi and Bitung International seaport in the city of
\nManado and Bitung on July 16.<\/p>\n
Deputy governor Freddy Sualang and the head of the provincial
\ncommunications office, Yopy Yehosua, confirmed on Tuesday the
\nplanned President's arrival.<\/p>\n
Yopy, chairman of the organizing committee for the
\ninauguration of the ports, said that the two projects had
\neconomic significance for both the province and the nation.<\/p>\n
\"We hope that the new Sam Ratulangi Airport will be able to
\naccommodate the flow of tourists coming to the province, while
\nthe seaport is now the biggest in the eastern part of the
\ncountry,\" Yopy boasted.<\/p>\n
He said that Sam Ratulangi Airport could, up until now, only
\nbe used by small planes. \"Now wide-bodied planes like Boeing 747s
\nwould be able to land. The runway is now 2,650 meters while it
\nwas only 1,800 meters and the passenger terminal, which was just
\n2,400 square meters in width, now covers 3,900 sq.m. The airport
\nis also equipped with a new Air Tower Traffic Control (ATC) and
\nInstrument Landing System, which makes it possible for the
\nairport to operate 24 hours a day non-stop.\"<\/p>\n
Currently Bouraq Airlines operates a direct flight from Manado
\nto Davao (the Philippines) twice a week, Silk Air serves a
\nManado-Singapore flight four times a week. \"And starting August 1
\nTrans Asia Airways will open a Taipei-Manado direct flight, 16
\ntimes in four days.\"<\/p>\n
Speaking about the seaport, Yopy said that three stages of
\nmajor works were underway. The first stage, which will end in
\n2005, involves transforming the port from a collector port to a
\nfeeder port, which could serve cargo ships of between 200 and 500
\nton-equivalent units (TEUS) in capacity.<\/p>\n
During the second stage, which would start in 2006 and end in
\n2015, the port would become a major port that could handle larger
\ncargo ships of between 500 and 750 TEUS, Yopy said. And finally,
\nat the third stage, Bitung port would become a modern port that
\nwould be able to handle cargo ships of between 750 and 1,500
\nTEUS.\" (48\/sur)<\/p>",
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