Sri Lanka formally handed over commercial activities in its main southern port to a Chinese company on Saturday and received US$292 million out of a US$1.12 billion deal, Finance Minister Mangala Samaraweera said.
COLOMBO: Sri Lanka formally handed over commercial activities in its main southern port to a Chinese company on Saturday and received US$292 million out of a US$1.12 billion deal, Finance Minister Mangala Samaraweera said.
The deal, signed in July, will see China Merchants Port Holdings, handling the Chinese-built Hambantota port on a 99-year lease. The port is near the main shipping route from Asia to Europe and likely to play a major role in China’s « Belt and Road » initiative.
« Today we received US$292 million as the first tranche of the Hambantota Port joint venture. This is but the first step in realising the true commercial value of the port after seven long years, » Samaraweera told the parliament.
The US$1.5 billion port was launched in 2010, but was incurring losses due to lack of commercial activity.
Ports Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe has said the government will receive another 10 percent, or around US$100 million, in a month and another US$585 million in six months.
