# Batam metropolitan area

Batam metropolitan area or officially Batam Raya is a metropolitan area located in Indonesia. This area includes Batam city and its surrounding areas such as Tanjung Pinang city, Bintan Regency, and Karimun Regency. This region of the Riau Islands Province near the Strait of Malacca includes one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world. It has an area of 3,432 square kilometres (1,325 sq mi), and in 2023 it had an estimated population of 1,941,225.

## Definition

The national government regards the Batam Metropolitan Area as including Batam, Tanjung Pinang, Bintan Regency, Karimun Regency. This area is on the international trade route and is directly adjacent to Singapore and Malaysia. In the region, tax and customs exemptions are applied to boost investment growth.

## Demographics

| Administrative Region | Area (km$^2$) | Pop'n 2020 Census | Pop'n 2022 estimate | Density (per km$^2$) 2022 |
| Batam | 1,034.73 | 1,196,396 | 1,269,413 | 1,226.8 |
| Tanjung Pinang | 150.37 | 227,663 | 239,854 | 1,595.1 |
| Bintan Regency | 1,317.15 | 159,518 | 165,781 | 125.9 |
| Karimun Regency | 930.45 | 253,457 | 266,177 | 286.1 |
| Babinka | 3,432.7 | 1,837,034 | 1,941,225 | 565.5 |

## Geography

Batam is a roughly oval island with many bays, islets, and peninsulas, located west of Bintan Island, south of Singapore, north of Rempang and Galang, and east of Bulang Island. The Singapore Strait separates Singapore and Batam, while the Riau Strait separates Batam and Bintan island.

## Economy

Under a framework signed in June 2006, Batam, along with parts of neighbouring Bintan and Karimun, are a part of a Special Economic Zone with Singapore; this zone eliminates tariffs and value-added taxes for goods shipped between Batam and Singapore. In 2007, Law No. 44 was enacted to supplement Law No. 36/2000 in establishing Batam as a free trade zone for 70 years.

### Tourism

Over 1.5 million tourists visited in 2015. Batam is the third-busiest entry port to Indonesia next to Bali and Jakarta. In 2014, around 58.8% of foreign tourists came from Singapore, 12.8% from Malaysia and 4.2% from South Korea.

### Foreign Investment

In the first semester of 2023, the value of foreign investment reached US$1.2 billion, while domestic investment was recorded at US$168 million. Most of the foreign investment came from Singapore.

## Infrastructure

Ferries connect Batam to Singapore, Bintan, and Johor Bahru (Malaysia). Five ferry terminals are on the island: Batam Harbour Bay Ferry Terminal, Nongsapura Ferry Terminal, Sekupang, Waterfront City, and Batam Center Ferry Terminal. Connections to Singapore are by way of Harbourfront and Tanah Merah Ferry Terminals run by Singapore Cruise Centre (SCC).
Trans Batam is the most reliable and the cheapest public transportation in Batam. It began to operate in 2005. Trans Batam is the second BRT system in Indonesia, after Jakarta's TransJakarta. The price for one ride is Rp3,000 for students and Rp5,000 for the public. Trans Batam operates from 06:00 to 18:00.
Hang Nadim International Airport is the Batam island's main airport, and has the longest runway of all airports in Indonesia. The airport was the largest airport in the Sumatra region from 1995 to 2012 with a capacity of six million passengers annually, and is now the second-largest in the Sumatra region after Kuala Namu International Airport in Medan, which has a capacity of eight million passengers.