The Hong Kong Airport Authority, which runs Asia's third-busiest air terminal, said it would invest in an airport outside the city for the first time, seeking to expand its source of income.
The government-owned HKAA said it would pay 1.99 billion yuan (US$240 million) for 35 percent of Xiaoshan International Airport Co, which operates Hangzhou's air terminal in eastern China's Zhejiang Province, according to a faxed statement yesterday.
The HKAA is investing outside the city to increase its sources of income, as Chek Lap Kok airport faces increasing competition for air traffic from facilities in southern China. Baiyun airport in the southern province of Guangdong opened last year and is the base for China Southern Airlines Co, the nation's largest carrier by fleet size.
The airport manager is in talks to cooperate with and invest in air terminals in Macau, Zhuhai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen, the company's Chief Executive David Pang said last October.
Xiaoshan Airport handled 6.4 million passengers last year, making it China's 10th-biggest airport, according to the General Administration of Civil Aviation of China, the industry regulator.