By: Staff Writer
Colombo (LNW): The Ports, Shipping and Aviation Ministry is considering increasing the container handling capacity of the Colombo Port, said Ports, Shipping and Aviation Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva.
He was addressing an event for the initiation of the construction work of the operations building at the East Container Terminal (ECT) of the Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA),
The minister said that the current 8.5 million TEU handling capacity at the Colombo Port will be increased to 35 million with the completion of the ECT, Jaya Container Terminal V (JCT-V), Western International Container Terminal (WICT), and the proposed North Port Projects in the future.
The construction of the ECT operations building commenced on March 8, 2023. The 1300-metre terminal will be built at a cost of USD 580 million.
The gantry cranes required for operations at the terminal have already been ordered. The construction of the four-story main operations building at the terminal will cost Rs. 1,300 million and is planned to be completed by February next year.
Commenting further, he emphasized that the operations of the ECT should be carried out with semi-automation and with a minimum number of employees recruited for its operations.
“These opportunities should be made available to the skilled youth of this country. They should have the potential to achieve maximum productivity through elevated efficiency in the operational process, especially by utilizing the most advanced technologies for port and terminal operations.
For this reason, everyone should well-identify the latest trends in the global commercial shipping industry, which runs in a very lucrative yet highly competitive business environment,” he added.
The Phase one of Colombo Port will operationalise by 2024. 60-70% of the transshipments at the Colombo port are linked with India.
He added that in the case of Western Container Terminal of the port, the Indian Government had no role as far as deciding of investor was concerned and it was a matter internal to Sri Lanka.
He elaborated the detailed timelines in the development of the WCT where Sri Lanka, India and Japan were involved in a trilateral arrangement initially.
The minister said that in early 2021, Sri Lanka had decided to go ahead with the development on its own, after which Adani group had expressed interest in development of ports in Sri Lanka. He said that Sri Lankan government then had negotiated the necessary agreement with Adani group.
