15 March 2018 12:14 am Views - 2633
By Sandun A. Jayasekera
A historic tripartite agreement was entered into yesterday by the three main terminal operators at the Port of Colombo to operate as one unit to further smoothen the activities at Sri Lanka’s main port.
The ambitious agreement will result in the three main terminals at the Colombo port — South Asia Gateway Terminal (SAGT), Jaye Container Terminal (JCT) and Colombo International Container Terminal (CICT) —functioning as a single unit mainly in respect of container handling, transshipment and ship handling and related activities, Ports and Shipping Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe said.
“This agreement will promote the Port of Colombo as one of the busiest main ports in Asia and elevate it further up among leading ports in the world from the current position of 23,” he said.
Samarasinghe said with the newly inked tripartite agreement, ships don’t have to wait for berthing facilities to clear up the docks at a particular terminal, killing time at the out harbour, as now they can seek berthing facilities from any of the three terminals available at that time.
He added that the new arrangement will boost efficiency, save time and will promote Port of Colombo as one of the most well-organised ports in the world.
“There is no doubt that with the construction of the Port City or Colombo Financial City, the Port of Colombo will also become one of the busiest with enhanced container handling, transshipment and port activities.
Functioning all three main terminals as one unit will complement one another, increase productivity and promote the Port of Colombo as one of the top ports in the region.
In turn, it will be a big boost to the economic progress of the country. With the construction of the East Container Terminal (ECT) shortly, the future of the Port of Colombo looks extremely encouraging,” Samarasinghe stressed.
Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) Chairman Dr. Parakrama Dissanayake speaking at the occasion said the signing of the tripartite agreement was a historic milestone for the SLPA as it will benefit the three companies, the country and the economy and added that efficiency in the Port of Colombo will attract more ships at its deep draft berths.
“The trend today is mergers among smaller companies and become major powerful companies in order to increase efficiency, productivity and profits. Our aim is to attract more and more ultra large container vessels.
With the rapid development of port infrastructure including the construction of new terminals and the public-private partnership in operations at the Port of Colombo, the handling capacity of the Port of Colombo will be increased rapidly,” Dissanayaka said.