The Techo International Airport in Phnom Penh, the capital of the Kingdom of Cambodia, stands out among the 11 architectural projects set to shape the world in 2025, according to the Cable News Network (CNN).
Cambodia is replacing its capital, Phnom Penh’s international airport, with one capable of handling six times as many visitors. The new Techo International Airport’s initial capacity of 13 million annual passengers will eventually rise to 30 million, part of the country’s ambitious bid to boost tourism and become a regional aviation hub.
The terminal building, located 12 miles (about 19 kilometres) south of the city centre, will be one of Southeast Asia’s largest. Plans to generate energy through an onsite solar farm also put it among the world’s greenest, according to architects Foster + Partners.
With a form inspired by traditional Cambodian design, the terminal’s main roof is supported by a series of structural timber “trees” (real trees will also rise through a large central void). Digital renderings show the structure’s gridded steel shell filtering daylight and illuminating an interior bursting with tropical greenery while passengers reach their gates via two airfoil-shaped wings.
Managed by Cambodia Airport Investment Co., Ltd., the project is a public-private partnership between Overseas Cambodian Investment Corporation (OCIC) with a 90 percent stake and the rest 10 percent stake belonging to the State Secretariat of Civil Aviation.
As a large-scale international airport level/Class 4F built over 2,600 hectares of land, this airport is divided into three phases of construction: Phase 1 from 2020 to 2030, Phase 2 from 2030 to 2050, and Phase 3 from 2050 onwards.
In the first phase, the Techo International Airport will be capable of handling a maximum of 13 million passengers and 175,000 tonnes of cargo per year.
The other ten grand infrastructure projects are the New Sydney Fish Market in Sydney, Australia; the Grand Ring in Osaka, Japan; the Life and Mind Building in Oxford, the UK; Canadian School in Cholula, Mexico; the South Station redevelopment in Boston, the U.S.; Goethe-Institut in Dakar, Senegal; Urban Glen in Hangzhou, China; Riyadh Metro in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; Skypark Business Centre in Luxembourg; and Danjiang Bridge in Taipei; Taiwan.
