AEC Feed

Lombok International Airport in West Nusa Tenggara is now included in the list of airports with visa-free facilities for citizens of 159 countries.
“The free-visa entry for foreigners from 159 countries has been opened at LIA. Hopefully it can widen access for foreign tourists traveling to Lombok and West Nusa Tenggara in general,” the region’s Tourism and Culture Agency head Mohammad Faozal said on Monday. There are 29 airports, 88 seaports and seven border checkpoint posts in Indonesia where certain foreign citizens can obtain a free visa upon arrival.
Faozal said the free-visa regulation could be enjoyed by foreigners who were traveling as a tourist, coming to visit their family, conducting social activities, attending art and culture seminars or participating in international exhibitions or meetings held by their office’s headquarters/representatives in Indonesia. – The Jakarta Post

Westports expects modest growth this year
Westports Holdings still anticipates modest growth this year despite posting relatively good numbers for its first quarter.
Chief executive officer Ruben Emir Gnanalingam said that he maintained a single-digit container volume growth forecast for the port operator due to the challenging global economic outlook.
“It would be too hasty to predict based on one quarter, as economic factors are still volatile,” he said.
Westports’ first-quarter net profit soared 42.3 per cent to 171.1 million ringgit (Bt1.5 billion) from a year ago, as ongoing expansion and modernisation of port operations in Klang boosted its cargo-handling capacity.
The sharp increase in profit was also contributed by a one-off gain from the disposal of investment securities, higher container tariff since November and cheaper fuel costs.
Revenue for the port operator jumped to 464.7 million ringgit for the quarter under review from 398.7 million ringgit in the previous corresponding quarter. The group handled total container volume of 9.1 million 20-foot equivalent units last year, up 8 per cent. Its total utilisation rate last year was 83 per cent. – The Star

VNPost to develop logistics centre in Da Nang
Viet Nam Post Corp will build a logistics and e-commerce centre in Da Nang’s Hoa Khanh Expansion Industrial Zone at a cost of 196 billion dong (Bt308 million) next quarter.
Chairman DO Ngoc Binh said it would be VNPost’s largest logistics centre in the central region, allowing them to provide quality services to customers. The centre, which covers 50,000 square metres in Lien Chieu district, 20 kilometres away from the city’s centre, will help connect the East-West Economic Corridor, National Highway No 1, Da Nang-Quang Ngai Expressway and the railway system. According to VNPost’s report, the corporation garnered 8.8 trillion dong in revenue last year, of which 230 billion dong was net profit.
Da Nang aims to become a centre of hi-tech industries, logistics services and tourism in central Vietnam.
– Viet Nam News

2nd phase of Nam Ou
project kicks off
The Nam Ou River Basin Hydropower Project has launched its second phase of construction, after completing the Nam Ou 2, 5 and 6 hydropower plants during the first phase. The opening ceremony for the second phase, comprising the Nam Ou 1, 3, 4 and 7 dams, took place in Vientiane on tomorrow.
The hydropower development project on the Nam Ou cascade is located in Phongsaly and Luang Prabang provinces.
The project includes seven dams, with a projected total capacity of 1,156 MW and an annual energy output of 5,017 GWh, according to Powerchina Resources Ltd.
Construction of the seven dams is divided into two phases, with an estimated total cost of US$2.8 billion.
In the first stage of the project, total capacity is estimated at 540 MW, with an annual energy output of 2,187 GWh.
In the second stage of the project, the Nam Ou 1, 3, 4, and 7 power stations will be developed. Their projected total capacity is 732 MW, with an annual energy output of 2,830 GWh.
Construction of phase 2 begins this month and will end in 2020.
— Vientiane Times