Adani Ports has said that it will use its own resources to fund a Sri Lankan port project and not seek US funding. It has added the Colombo West International Terminal project is progressing well and is on track for commissioning by early next year. Last year, the US International Development Finance Corporation had said that it would provide 553 million dollars in financing for the port terminal project, in which the Indian conglomerate has a majority stake.
The Colombo West International Terminal is being developed by a consortium of Adani Ports, Sri Lankan conglomerate John Keells Holdings, and the Sri Lanka Ports Authority. Last month, SLPA reaffirmed their commitment towards the port development project, maintaining that there is no immediate plan to reassess or terminate the agreement. The US Department of Justice and SEC had accused officials of the Adani Group of bribery, which has been firmly denied, deeming them baseless by the Gautam Adani-led group.
The terminal will be Sri Lanka’s largest and deepest container terminal. When complete, the terminal will be able to handle Ultra Large Container Vessels with capacities of 24,000 TEUs and is expected to have an annual handling capacity of over 3.2 million TEUs.
