Hambantota port eyes wider arena of services
With special laws to be introduced soon, the Hambantota International Port which is operated by Hambantota International Port Group (HIPG) is looking towards wider arena of services including catering to leisure travel and facilitating cruise travellers and bunkering.
This was highlighted by HIPG CEO Ray Ren at the opening of one stop service centre by the BOI at the port on Saturday afternoon.
Ren said the objective is to convert the port into a major logistics centre for the region. Chinese Ambassador Cheng Xueyuan said the port is in a position to flourish having handle 320,000 of cargo in 2018.
Development Strategies and International Trade Minister Malik Samarawickrama urged the China Merchants Holdings Company and other partners to make the port a viable venture. “Today is a milestone in the history of Sri Lankan economy and for the people in the South as the opening of one stop service centre and the industrial zone in Hambantota will bring a transformation to the province while the development would flow into the other surrounding towns,” he said.
Board of Investment (BOI) Director General Champika Malalgoda said the Hambantota port brings Sri Lanka’s dream of becoming a logistics hub closer to reality.
“We hope this would give an opportunity for more businesses to flourish and investment opportunities to come in ,” she said.
“The vision of Hambantota International Port is to create a right mix to take port development from merely a destination for vessels, through commercial, marine services and lifestyle concepts. More so when one considers how airports have developed in recent years, HIPG operate across five platforms, providing RO-RO conventional cargo, oil and gas container bunkering and cruse services along with wide range of client and industry services to ensure fleets remain operative condition. The services include bunkering, ship repairs, underwater services, ship chandlers, surveys and crew changes,” an HIPG press release said.