A sum of US$ 190 million would be invested to installs gantry cairns and also add other infrastructure to the East Container Terminal, said Minister of Ports, Shipping and Southern Development, Sagala Ratnayaka.
He said that they would initially invest this amount and then get it reimbursed from JAICA under a loan agreement.
Speaking to the Daily News, he said that they would give priority to the development of harbours, since the recent Easter Sunday blasts had not been a major negative impact for the Shipping industry.
Ratnayaka said that the passenger terminal in the Colombo Harbour too would be developed. “We want this passenger terminal to be in par with the Singapore Cruse terminal to attract vessels that would pick up and drop passengers in Colombo.”
He said that the Kankesanthurai Harbour development is also taking place with the assistance of the Indian Government.
The Minister also said that the second consecutive Port of Colombo Awards Night which organized by Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) in collaboration with the Jaya Container Terminal (JCT), South Asia Gateway Terminals (SAGT) and the Colombo International Container Terminals(CICT) at the Shangri-La Hotel, Colombo, evaluated and awarded the invaluable service operators to increase the volumes of the port in its course to make Sri Lanka the mega hub of the region.
At present, 22 main lines and eight feeder services are engaged with the Port of Colombo for container operations.
Courtesy: Daily News
