Singapore plans to start building Terminal 5 at Changi Airport in 2025, the country’s transportation minister said Friday, adding it would open to flights in the mid-2030s.

The government paused the project during the covid pandemic when the future of commercial aviation seemed unclear.

But air passenger traffic volumes are back to 80% of pre-pandemic levels, minister S Iswaran told Singapore’s parliament.

He said he expected a full recovery in 2024.

In May last year the government said the T5 scheme would be restarted, but it did not say when.

“We are working with consultants to incorporate lessons from the pandemic, and update the design to be more modular, resilient and energy-efficient,” said Iswaran.

“Land preparation and drainage works at Changi East have been completed, and construction is expected to commence by 2025. The third runway will also be ready towards the later part of this decade,” he added.

T5 will be able to handle 50 million passengers a year, he said.