The Sri Lanka Ports Authority has indicated that although China Merchants Port Holdings is withdrawing from the project to develop modern logistics infrastructure at the Colombo Port, the initiative itself will not be abandoned.
In a statement, the Authority announced that, despite the withdrawal of the Chinese company, a decision has been made to proceed with the development of a new logistics center under a public-private partnership (PPP) model, to be facilitated through a competitive bidding process. The announcement states that a significant extent of land within the Colombo Port is set to be utilized for the new project, with plans to establish an integrated facility that will support a range of port-related and value-added logistics services.
Furthermore, the announcement notes that the objective of this project is to develop the Colombo Port—moving beyond its current role as a container transshipment hub—into a comprehensive maritime and logistics center. It also mentions an intention to pursue an alternative development approach that is better aligned with the port’s long-term commercial and strategic goals.