From Nasriah Darus

ISTANBUL, Oct 31 (Bernama) -- The consortium behind the Istanbul Sabiha Gocken International Airport terminal, in which Malaysia Airport Holdings Bhd (MAHB) holds a 20 per cent stake, is confident of growth in terms of passengers and airlines.

Istanbul Sabiha Gokcen International Airport Investment, Development and Operation Inc's chief executive officer Gokhan Bugday said the optimism was based on fact that the airport had been able to record growth every year.

"The growth rate is sensational in this region. We are actually seeing a nine per cent growth rate for this year and we are going to have between 30 and 35 per cent next year because Istanbul is important in this region," he said.

He was speaking at a press conference for Malaysian journalists on Friday prior to the official opening of the terminal on Saturday.

The facility, which is on the Asian side of the bicontinental city, is getting a good response from industries in Istanbul because of the constraints at the Ataturk International Airport on the European side.

"In Turkey, the growth is generally around six to seven per cent this year but this airport is growing around 39 per cent because of the importance of Istanbul in this region," Bugday said.

He said the airport handled 4.5 million passengers in 2007, and is expecting 6.1 million passengers this year and more than 8.5 million passengers next year.

MAHB is part of the consortium which also comprised GMR Infrastructure Limited of India and Limak Group, a Turkish company which manages the Istanbul Sabiha Gokcen International Airport.

The airport, constructed from greenfield, has been among those with the biggest growth rate between 2002 and 2007 and is expected to reach the 25 million passenger mark by 2023.

Limak chairman Nihat Ozdemir said because of the industry boom in the country, the Turkish government was looking into the possibility of setting up a third airport in Istanbul.

He said the company would consider bidding for any opportunity that may arise and also bring its partners in the consortium to join the project based on their good relations.

GMR chairman G.M. Rao said the consortium, consisting of a good combination of three leading companies, had managed to build the terminal in 18 months which he considered as a "world record" without compromising on quality.

"We all are like a family together with one mission: to build the terminal. The government gives us a lot of confidence to further invest in this country," he said.

MAHB chairman Tan Sri Dr Aris Othman said the company was optimistic about development of the airport because Turkey has a lot to offer in terms of tourism and many Malaysians are going to come in.

-- BERNAMA