Proposed designs for a new terminal building of Beijing Capital Airport (BCA) were on display Wednesday to seek the opinion of the public.

The new terminal building will be the key project of the expansion project of BCA, which will cast 16.7 billion yuan (US$2 billion).

The total area of terminal buildings, together with the current two buildings in use, will reach 700,000 square meters, with passenger capacity reaching 60 million annually. A new runway will also be built, some 1,500 meters away from the current east runway.

The capital used for the construction will come from national financial support, A shares and bonds of BCA and loans from banks. The local Beijing municipal government will help provide infrastructure including water, electricity and gas as well as build more roads to the airport.

The expansion work will be finished by the end of 2007. The new terminal building will serve Air China and its alliance airline companies, as well as international airlines. The two old terminals will serve other domestic airlines.

The construction will help BCA become a hub in China and even the world, as well as satisfy the growing needs for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, said Li Peiying, general manager of BCA Holding Company.

The airport has undergone two major expansions since it was finished in 1959. It now has two runways and two terminal buildings, with passenger capacity reaching 3.5 million annually.

In 2003, the airport collected eight design plans from all over the world, with three of them approved by experts and waiting for the Chinese public's opinion, said Chen Guoxing, general commander of BCA Expansion Project Headquarters.

(Xinhua News Agency September 11, 2003)