India counters China, to make $700 mn port in Lanka |
In an obvious effort by India to counter China in the Indian Ocean and South Asia region, an Indian company entered into a $700 million deal to build a strategic deep-sea container terminal in Sri Lanka. The Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) said it signed an agreement with India`s Adani Group to build a brand-new terminal next to a $500-million Chinese-run jetty at the sprawling port in the capital Colombo. The agreement worth more than $700 million is the largest foreign investment ever in the port sector of Sri Lanka. It said Adani will enter into a partnership with a local conglomerate, John Keells, and the Sri Lankan government-owned SLPA as a minority partner. Keells said it will have 34 percent of the company while Adani will have a 51 percent controlling stake in the joint venture known as the Colombo West International Terminal. The new container jetty will be 1.4 kilometres in length, with a depth of 20 metres and an annual capacity to handle 3.2 million containers. The first phase of the project with a 600-metre terminal is due to be completed within two years. The terminal will revert to Sri Lankan ownership after 35 years of operation. Plans to allow India into the strategic Colombo port go back several years, but they were scuttled in February when trade unions linked to the ruling coalition opposed giving New Delhi a partially-built terminal within the port.
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