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The Sri Lankan port of Colombo has handled the largest container vessel yet, with the arrival of the 16,000 teu, 296m long Marco Polo, operated by CMA CGM. The previous biggest was the 15,500 teu Edith Maersk.
Speaking at an event to mark the new milestone, Minister of Port and Shipping, Arjuna Ranatunga, said the government planned to expand Colombo port to keep pace with demand. However future investment projects would keep a 51 percent share for Sri Lankan interests, he promised.
The Minister added, “Sri Lanka has now become a centre of shipping routes between China and Europe. Hence, we hope to develop our harbours as an Asian container hub. In the last political era, investors were reluctant to invest in the country as a result of the unfavourable socio-political situation. However, a significant development has been achieved in the port industry within the last six months and we should focus on increasing the potential of Port Authority.”
Sarathkumara Premachandra, a former chief operations manager at Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA), has been appointed its new managing director by Mr. Ranatunga. Prior to this appointment, Mr. Premachandra was regional manager of Asian Terminals of CMA CGM, the world’s third-largest container shipping line. He has wide experience in container terminal operations, having held senior management positions at the port of Fujairah and Westport in Malaysia, in addition to SLPA terminals.
