MALAYSIA. Malaysia Airports is preparing to launch the first phase of tenders for its ambitious Klia2 low-cost terminal later this week, with a further phase to follow in February. The airport company has said that levels of interest among international as well as local concessionaires are high.
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“We definitely have created the right hype. We are getting interest from both local and international operators.“ |
Puan Faizah Khairuddin Senior General Manager, Commercial Services Malaysia Airports Holdings |
As reported, Klia2, the new permanent Low-Cost Carrier Terminal at Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) is set to open in October 2012. Malaysia Airports has projected RM1.2 billion (US$380 million) in retail sales from the terminal in its first year of operations.
Senior General Manager Commercial Services Puan Faizah Khairuddin told The Moodie Report that a tender briefing for Phase 1 would be held on 14 December, after which first-phase tender documents would be released.
The focus in this phase will be on “landside offerings, which comprise stand-alone boutique outlets for retail, F&B and services (banking and tele-communications). There will be more opportunities under Phase 2, where the open tender exercise will commence February 2012.” All of the tender and procurement exercises are scheduled to be completed by July 2012.
The next phase, covering airside activities, will cover around 70% of the retail space, including duty free. Total retail and F&B space for both landside and airside is 35,200sq m, all of it “within the main customer flow” according to Malaysia Airports. There are over 225 lots available.
The offerings will be in the form of open bars and island cafes, duplex storefronts and a duty free walkthrough placed at the start and end of a ‘Sky Bridge’, linking the main terminal, flight zones and satellite area. Additionally, the new hub will incorporate a movie and sports lounge and a kids’ zone providing retailers with a more thematic or destination retail approach.
Crucially, Malaysia Airports revealed, most contracts will be for three years with the option of a two-year extension. Ms Khairuddin added: “There will also be cases where the duration is dependent on the investment appetite of the concessionaires.”
The offer will differ from the existing Internatoinal Terminal at KLIA. “We have conducted market research to better understand our customers and therefore, based from the product and brand perspective, Klia2 offerings will range between middle to upper middle segments,” said Ms Khairuddin.
Preview the new Klia2 in the YouTube video above | |
As noted above, interest from across the industry has been strong. She said: “We do have major international players interested in Klia2 and we certainly welcome their participation. The procurement process is the same where entry into the Klia2 retail market is based on merit and it will be at the same level playing field as any local participation.
“We definitely have created the right hype. We are getting interest from both local and international operators. What will be most important is to obtain the right product, brands and ambience in evoking the ‘retail explorers’ within our passengers.”
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A series of artist’s impressions of the new KLIA 2, set to open in October 2012; at 242,000sq m the RM2 billion (US$663 million) facility is hailed as the largest purpose-built dedicated terminal for low-cost carriers in the world |
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