Plantations Committee to call for PPP for state plantations

The Plantations Committee under the Public Enterprise Development is to call for proposals for public-private partnerships in managing state plantations.

Officials said that they have identified 20,000 hectares (ha) of productive agricultural lands including forests and timber lands."In one month's time we'll call for proposals for all the agricultural plantations for Public Private Partnerships (PPP)," an official told the Business Times.

So far the Ministry has received some 80 unsolicited projects proposals. The official said that they will also be asked to apply. The committee wants to plan land capability based models on these plantations in order to get better income, he said.

Under the Ministry there're five plantation companies Elkaduwa, Janatha Estate Development Board (JEDB), Sri Lanka Estate Plantations Corporation (SLSPC), Chilaw Plantations Ltd and Kurunegala Plantations Ltd.

Elkaduwa, JEDB and SLSPC are tea based and the other two are coconut based.

The official said that the coconut based plantations are both profitable, but their yield levels are below the national average. The official added that apart from the 20,000 ha, there're 38,000 ha of land out of which 15,000 ha are non pro- ductive and which can be allocated for tourism, or renewable energy projects.

He said that this committee is considering plantations as 'not only plantations' but also as state assets.

"So in terms of state assets the plantations have lands, minerals, water, beauty/ scenery and plants. With this concept, the Plantations Committee is looking at the plantations to maximise the returns of these assets."

Officials said that they have identified 20,000 hectares (ha) of productive agricultural lands including forests and timber lands.