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President and other distinguished gussets at
the inauguration of CICT
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President
Mahinda Rajapaksa declared open the US$ 500
million Colombo International Container Terminal (CICT) in Colombo South to become a major shipping hub in the
region. The US$ 500 million project was
launched in 2006 to cater for the increasing demands of services in the
international shipping industry. The French container ‘Pegasus’ , the biggest
ever vessel to arrive in Colombo anchored at the harbour last morning to mark
the occasion.
The
main terminal was built by the private sector and all three terminals, each
having a length of 1,200m and facilities to accommodate three berths alongside
of the port can handle 75 million teu’s per year. The port is built with a
partnership between the government and China Merchant Holdings International.
Under the Colombo Port Expansion Project, 10,000 direct and 15,000 indirect
employment opportunities will be created. Only the South terminal was declared
open and the East terminal will be ready
for operation in 2014. All construction activities are expected to be completed
by the year 2020.
The Colombo Port Expansion Project (CPEP) allows Sri Lanka to meet
increasing demands of services in the international shipping industry in the
Indian Ocean. The Colombo port, situated on a major shipping route between east
and west, is a major port in the Asian region. The general public will be
allowed to visit the Colombo South harbour from August 8 -13. Senior Ministers A.H.M. Fowzie,
Piyasena Gamage, Ministers Nimal Sirirpala de Silva, Rauf Hakeem, Rohitha
Abeygunawardena, and Nirmala Kothelawela, parliamentarians, Ambassadors of
China and Korea, Secretary of Ports and Highways R.W. Premasiri, SLPA Chairman
Priyath Bandu Wickrama, Navy Commander Jayanath Colombage and foreign guests
were present at the occasion.
