North Bali International Airport: Status, Location, Timeline, and Updates

(KUBUTAMBAHAN, BULELENG REGENCY) — Indonesia’s government kept the North Bali International Airport project approved as of April 2026, but officials pushed back its construction schedule after delays in transportation approvals, environmental checks and coordination among agencies and local stakeholders.

The project in Kubutambahan, Buleleng Regency remains covered by Presidential Regulation No. 12 of 2025 and sits inside the RPJMN 2025–2029 as a national strategic priority. Construction has not begun, despite an initial plan for mid-2025, and the target for the first runway has slipped to late 2028 at earliest.

President Prabowo Subianto’s administration approved the airport on June 27, 2025, through an announcement by Coordinating Minister for Community Empowerment Muhaimin Iskandar. The move placed the project at the center of Jakarta’s infrastructure plans for Bali and tied it to efforts to ease pressure on I Gusti Ngurah Rai Airport in the island’s south.

Nine months later, the approval still stands, but implementation has slowed. The Ministry of Transportation carried out added technical reviews, including updated feasibility studies released in January 2026, which confirmed the site’s viability while requiring enhanced environmental impact assessments because of concerns over local ecosystems in Buleleng.

PT BIBU Panji Sakti, the lead developer, said in a March 2026 statement that financial commitments totaling IDR 45 trillion (approximately USD 2.8 billion) are secured, with 70% from private investors and the balance from state-backed loans. No revocation or halt has taken place.

A February 2026 joint communique from the Ministry of Public Works and Bali Provincial Government said the government was prioritizing “sustainable integration.” That approach has shaped the slower timeline now attached to the project.

The Ministry of Transportation oversees final site certification and aviation safety compliance. Its latest directive on March 15, 2026, extended the preparatory phase by six months.

The Ministry of Public Works and Housing is handling supporting infrastructure, including a proposed 45-km toll road to the airport. Bali Provincial Government and Buleleng Regency are leading local coordination, with Regent I Nyoman Sutjidra and Governor Wayan Koster endorsing updated plans in a April 1, 2026, regency council meeting.

Bappenas is monitoring the project’s fit with the RPJMN 2025–2029 and requires quarterly progress reports with community benefit metrics. That reporting framework has become part of the government’s case for keeping the airport on the books even as work slips.

The airport site lies in Kubutambahan district, Buleleng Regency, in northern Bali, about 90 km north of Denpasar. The drive currently takes about 2-hour drive under current conditions, though planned highways could cut that travel time.

Project planners set aside 1,800 hectares of mostly state-owned land. The initial phase calls for a single 3,500-meter runway designed to handle wide-body aircraft such as Boeing 777s, with capacity for 15 million passengers annually by full operations.

Land acquisition has reached 85% completion, according to regency records. Those records show 250 households have undergone voluntary relocations with compensation set at IDR 500 million per hectare (USD 32,000).

Design work has also continued while approvals remain pending. March 2026 renders from PT BIBU showed a terminal using Balinese Hindu architectural motifs, including curved roofs and water features, alongside eco-friendly materials.

Support works are advancing around the site. A new North Bali Highway, under construction since Q4 2025, will connect the airport area to Singaraja port, while feasibility studies for a light rail line to Lovina Beach tourism hubs moved forward in February 2026.

Environmental safeguards have expanded as the project moved through review. An enlarged EIA finalized March 2026 includes mangrove restoration and zero-waste systems aimed at reducing risks to nearby rice terraces and coral reefs.

Surveys also identified minor route and site adjustments to avoid sacred sites. Those changes delayed groundwork by three months.

Under the revised schedule, officials expect the Ministry of Transportation’s final nod and a ceremonial groundbreaking in Q2 2026 (April-June). Site clearing and foundation work are now set for the end of 2026.

The first runway is now targeted for late 2028 and would begin limited domestic flights. Full international operations, together with the Phase 2 terminal, are projected for 2030.

That marks a clear shift from the earlier timetable. Approval remained on schedule in June 2025, but groundbreaking moved from Mid-2025 to Q2 2026, the first runway moved from End-2027 to Late 2028, and full operations shifted from 2029 to 2030.

A Ministry statement on March 20, 2026, described the slower pace as “meticulous preparation” meant to prevent infrastructure overruns seen elsewhere. PT BIBU expects 5,000 construction jobs to peak in 2027 and then 2,000 permanent roles.

The economic argument for the airport remains central to the project’s political backing. I Gusti Ngurah Rai Airport handles 25 million passengers yearly and operates at 120% capacity, while planners say a second airport in the north would spread tourism and investment more evenly across Bali.

Bappenas projections say the airport could divert 30% of arrivals northward. Northern destinations including Lovina Beach, Gitgit Waterfall and Sekumpul have figured heavily in those projections.

The same estimates point to 10 million additional visitors by 2032 and 50,000 jobs in hospitality and services. Northern hotel occupancy could rise from 40% to 75%, while the airport could inject IDR 20 trillion annually and reduce the north-south GDP gap from 3:1 to 2:1.

Broader employment forecasts linked to the airport put direct and indirect job creation at 15,000 by 2030. Training programs launched January 2026 are intended to give local residents priority for those roles.

The plan also extends beyond tourism. Officials and developers have promoted the airport as a business hub for logistics and MICE, or meetings, incentives, conferences, exhibitions, and as part of Bali’s effort to position itself as a Southeast Asian gateway rivaling Singapore’s Changi.

President Prabowo framed the project in those terms in a February 2026 speech, saying, “North Bali Airport will unlock the island’s untapped potential, ensuring equitable prosperity.” His government has tied the project to a broader push for regional balance and what it calls downstream development.

Transport officials have also defended the delays. The Minister of Transportation said in March 2026, “All systems green; delays are for perfection, not hindrance.”

Governor Koster, speaking in April 2026, stressed local safeguards and said 20% local procurement would be maintained. Sutjidra has pushed for a community funding model tied to 5% project revenue.

Even with that backing, the airport has drawn political and local criticism. PDIP chair Megawati Sukarnoputri said in January 2026 that southern airport upgrades should come first and called the project a “resource misallocation.”

Airlines have also sought clearer assurances. Garuda Indonesia and Lion Air are in talks over route viability and are negotiating for 20 initial international slots.

In Kubutambahan, protests in February 2026 focused on water use and local impacts. Those demonstrations led to a tripartite forum and then to enhanced consultations alongside a IDR 2 trillion community fund.

Inflation has added another challenge by pushing project costs 15% higher. Government guarantees are intended to cover shortfalls.

Officials have pointed to several mitigation steps as the project moves through review. They include public EIA dashboards and efforts to secure airline MOUs in Q2 2026.

The airport’s travel and immigration implications have also started to draw attention because the site is intended as Bali’s second international gateway. Plans call for immigration facilities that mirror Ngurah Rai’s e-gates and biometric systems and can handle 5,000 hourly passengers.

Visa-on-arrival expansions for 90+ countries and overstay fine enforcement would apply there as well. Plans also include dedicated immigration counters, and officials expect the facility to support demand from investors, tourism workers and construction-related arrivals if traffic shifts north.

Indonesia’s investor visa, or Second Home Visa, received 2025 updates offering 5-10 year stays for USD 130,000 property investments. The project’s supporters say that framework fits northern Bali developments if the airport proceeds on the current schedule.

KITAS processing could decentralize under the plan, which would aid relocations to the north. The airport is also expected to offer northern flight options by 2029, although full international operations remain targeted for 2030.

The North Bali International Airport proposal reaches back to 2016, but its status changed materially after entry into Presidential Regulation No. 12 of 2025 and the RPJMN 2025–2029. That shift gave the project formal standing inside the national development agenda.

Pressure on Bali’s existing tourism footprint has sharpened the case for expansion. The island recorded 6.3 million visitors in 2025, adding strain to the south and renewing calls to spread growth toward Buleleng Regency.

Academics and non-government groups have tried to shape that expansion rather than stop it outright. Udayana University studies support biodiversity offsets, while local consultations have focused on sacred sites, shoreline protection and the balance between jobs and environmental costs.

For now, the project remains approved, funded and delayed all at once. The next test comes in Q2 2026, when the Ministry of Transportation is expected to decide whether Kubutambahan finally gets the ceremonial groundbreaking that was once supposed to happen a year earlier.