Trillion Dollar Space Economy lures talent and investors
Pahang Aerospace City (PAC), a large-scale aerospace and technology development, combining new international airport infrastructure, MRO facilities and a futuristic space city to facilitate Air Launch and Sea Launch operations, will use this year’s Dubai Airshow as a key launch platform to present the multi-billion-dollar project to UAE and regional stakeholders.
Inspired by the fast-emerging space economy, predicted to be worth USD 1 Trillion by 2040 according to PAC’s CEO Prof. Muhamad Nurazmi Abas, PAC is strategically positioned to capture interest from private companies, start-ups and institutional investors. The development is set to be a catalyst to incubate talent and a multimodal hub for advanced technology.
One example will be the unveiling of a 3 party MOU between Abu Dhabi’s K2, a government owned enterprise specialising in AI and autonomous vehicles, Pahang Aerospace City and the University Malaysia Pahang Al-Sultan Abdullah (UMPSA), to collaborate on the development of next-generation autonomous platforms, data centre and future city initiatives. A key feature of this MOU will be the creation of the Venture Studio, providing reciprocal opportunities for UAE and Malaysian technologists to bring their innovations to life.
Back down to earth, PAC aims to be an economic powerhouse of the Eastern Corridor Economic Region of Malaysia, integrating air with sea, rail and road infrastructure. The new Kuantan International Airport is set to open in Q4 2031 and will be at the heart of the PAC Omniport Multi-Modal Logistics and Industrial Development. Other key features of its masterplan include an AI and Data Centre, Advanced Air Mobility and, in the future, Hyperport facilities.
One of PAC’s early partners is the specialist French hybrid-electric aviation company Ascendance. It signed agreements with Malaysia’s Pen Aviation and Pahang Aerospace City Development to explore the integration of its hybrid-electric propulsion technology into regional aviation applications.
The PAC team will be led in Dubai by its CEO, Professor Muhamad Nurazmi Abas. An advocate for the new space economy, Nurazmi’s leadership has been proven across multiple space and technology ventures, including space cities, launch sites, vertiports satellite and defence technology.
Prof. Nurazmi said: “The UAE and the Malaysia enjoy excellent bilateral relations. This was emphasised by the recent signing of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) between the two countries earlier this year which will promote private-sector collaboration, and create new opportunities for investment between the UAE and Malaysia. This means that the timing for PAC’s participation at the Dubai Airshow could not be better.”
These sentiments were echoed by the Chief Minister to the State of Pahang, YAB Dato Seri Wan Rosdy bin Wan Ismail, he said: “The Dubai Airshow has always been a symbol of innovation, ambition, and partnership, values that deeply resonate with the State of Pahang. Today, as Malaysia advances its vision for a high-technology and knowledge-driven economy, Pahang stands proudly at the forefront of this transformation, leading the nation’s aerospace and new-space development through the establishment of the Pahang Aerospace City (PAC) and thenew Kuantan International Airport.”
PAC will be located at stand 694 at the Dubai Airshow between 17-21 November.
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