HAMBANTOTA PORT

“Hambantota port” is the second-largest underwater port in Sri Lanka after the Colombo port and this port plays an important role for Sri Lanka to develop international business and economic sustainability. China merchant port invested in the “Hambantota port” and took an 85% stake and now this port is a part of a Chinese company. This port is close to the European and Asian supply chain route Suez Canal helps China, Sri Lanka to conduct international business through this port. This port is created by Sri Lanka port authority, funded by EXIM Bank of China and it is also known as “Magampura Mahinda Rajapaksa Port”. 

“Hambantota port” 

“Hambantota port” is an important port situated in deep water in Sri Lanka and by 2020 this port will handle around 1.8 million bulk cargo and LPG cargo. The construction of this port was started in 2008 and it opened in 2010. The profit of “Hambantota port” was reported as approximately “US$1.81 Million” but it was mentioned as an economically viable port. The Government of Sri Lanka decided to privatize this port to increase foreign exchange in this country. 

A china company was selected for this port and China provided “US$1.12 billion” to Sri Lanka and other additional costs for port development. Sri Lanka is situated near the Suez Canal that was considered as one of the important ship freight corridors. Therefore this port plays an important role in the international business market to supply products in the international market. This port helps to minimize the work pressure on the Colombo port and provides effective service for ships such as refueling service, maintenance service, and logistic services. This ship plays an important role in the international business market and economic growth of Sri Lanka as it is close to the international shipping routes.

Hambantota Sri Lanka

“Hambantota port” is situated in Sri Lanka and it is the second largest deep water port of this country. It helps to handle the pressure of shipping freight from the Colombo port and plays a significant role in the economic development of Sri Lanka. In this shipping route, the “Hambantota port” is used by approximately 4500 oil tankers and this route saves around three days of fuel for a ship. This port is very close to India and helps different countries to deliver products and materials to India for capturing a large market.  

This port plays an important role in international energy services through which approximately 50% of oil is traded in the international market. The authority of Sri Lanka port created “Hambantota International Port Group”(HIPG) later it was operated through a joint partnership with China. This port offers good shipment of goods through different freight such as rail, marine, transportation to reach consumer goods, raw materials in different local as well as international markets.

China port in Sri Lanka

“Hambantota port is a deep water port in Sri Lanka and plays a key role in the most important shipping route Suez Canal. The Sri Lanka Government invested in this port in 2016 and they face a huge economic loss in operating this port. The Sri Lanka government decided to privatize this port to increase foreign exchange in an effective manner. China took an 80% stake in this port by paying around USD 1.12 billion” to the Sri Lanka government. After creating this joint venture “China Merchants Port Holdings” provided funds for developing this port to increase their international market growth and economic sustainability. 

After the privatization of this port, the cargo handling capacity of this port increased from around 420,421 million tons to 1,206,425 million tons. China-funded this port from EXIM bank to develop the infrastructure of “Hambantota port” for attracting more shipments. The Sri Lanka government gives a 99 years lease of this port for China to rise around “USD 1.2 billion”. China developed the infrastructure of this port to provide a wide range of port services for customers. It works as a multipurpose port in Sri Lanka to provide maintenance service, refueling service, and shipping service for consumer goods. 

Conclusion

From the article, it has been summarized that “Hambantota port” is one of the important deepwater ports in Sri Lanka that provide several port services for customers. China takes approximately 85% in 2017 to develop its infrastructure. After the joint partnership with China, it developed the capacity of ship handling that reduced pressure on Colombo port. The Sri Lanka government privatized this port after facing a huge economic loss. It plays a key role for the shipping route Suez Canal as it reduces fuel cost and saves three days of ships to deliver consumer goods effectively. The China authority of the port provides around “US$1.12 billion” to the Sri Lanka government for getting a lease of this port for 99 years.