Colombo start losing transit box volumes to ME, SI ports

Colombo: The Colombo Port South Harbour Development Project which was initiated in late nineties, has still not been given the green light to get off the ground and losing transhipment container volumes to both ports in Middle East (ME) and South India (SI).

Since the Jaya Containers Terminal and SAGT terminals will soon run full capacity and face draft limitation to new generation in excess of 7,200 TEU vessels, Colombo needs to expedite new developments without delay.

Professor in Port Engineering from University of Moratuwa Samantha Hettiarachchi said that all feasibility studies were carried out with assistance from the Asian Development Bank and technical design criteria were model tested by Lanka Hydraulic Institute long ago but due to the delay in implementing this project many transhipment businesses are getting diverted to India.

He said that with the increased volume growth in containerised traffic, Colombo is challenged with capacity limitations which it foresees to retain the competitive position in the region as before.

It was because of that Sri Lanka Ports Authority embarked on the massive expansion plan with a new South Harbour away from the existing port facility and that will be the key strategy in the future to retain competitiveness amongst the fast developing Indian ports, Hettiarachchi said.

Over the recent past many global terminal operators have been competing to grab Indian ports to retain the ever growing volume of Indian container traffic. But draft restrictions on many ports limit such to attain status of regional hub port.

The Institute of Engineers Sri Lanka (IESL) has organised a seminar to educate the public on this issues tomorrow at 5.15 p.m. at the IESL Auditorium Wijerama Mawatha, Colombo 7. Prof. Samantha Hettiarachchi, and Chief Design Engineer, Don Wooton from the project consultants of UK will discuss the key design aspects and the environmental parameters addressed in the design at this seminar