Changi Airports International has formed a strategic joint venture with the Shenzhen Airport Group to develop regional airports in China. The alliance will give CAI, a subsidiary of the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore which operates Changi Airport, further access to the aviation market in China.

CAI started in China by providing technical consultancy services three years ago and followed that up with a 29 percent private equity stake in Nanjing Lukou International Airport in January. CAI will hold a 49 percent stake in the joint venture, while Shenzhen Airport Group will control the remaining 51 percent. This is the fi rst joint venture between Shenzhen Airport Group, which owns 54.6 percent of Shenzhen Airport Co Ltd, and a foreign company.

Shenzhen’s Baoan airport is the fourth largest in China in terms of passenger volume. CAI believes that the opportunities in China are tremendous as airport development there remains a major possible investment area. China has 146 airports — far below the 5,600 in the US, which has only one fi fth of China’s population.