By Chandeepa Wettasinghe
Access Engineering PLC has further extended its international presence by opening a branch office in the Free Zone of the Republic of Djibouti to explore possibilities of road and port constructions in Djibouti.

“We are exploring the possibilities of road and port construction in Djibouti. We already have an engineer posted there to go through and process projects as and when they come,” Access Engineering Managing Director Christopher Joshua said.

He said that his company was given a license to operate in Djibouti following an introduction by China Merchant Holdings International Co. Ltd., which operates the Colombo International Container Terminal and has conducted business with Access Engineering.

Reports said that China Merchant Holdings obtained 23.5 percent of the shares in the Port of Djibouti for US$185 million, and is in the process of expanding it with an investment of US$ 400 million.

The international interest in Djibouti is due to its strategic location; as the entrance to the Red Sea, and therefore the shortest route between Europe and the Far East runs through a narrow strip of ocean between the small East African country and Yemen.

Joshua further added that Access Engineering is also contemplating civil engineering work in neighbouring Ethiopia.