Port of Hambantota declares 2022 “year of construction” – The Island

Three projects worth US$373 million already underway

Hambantota International Port (HIP) has declared 2022 as a “construction year”, with several ongoing projects reaching different stages of construction of their respective factories in the port’s industrial park. HIP is fully focused on getting the projects off the ground to have the first phase of the park operational by the end of this year, HIP sources told media.

“The port’s high-speed productivity concept ‘HIP Speed’ is playing a key role in accelerating all aspects of the three major projects currently under construction. The luxury yacht building plant, Plug and play park-in-park facility and tire manufacturing plant which started at record speed with the support of the port, brings a total value of 373 million US dollars in foreign direct investment in the country,” they said.

Johnson Liu, CEO of Hambantota International Port Group (HIPG) and Architect of HIP Speed, said, “We have declared 2022 ‘the year of construction’ as our focus during these 12 months would be primarily the construction of the first phase of the port. industrial park and related sectors. It is not that the construction of new projects will not continue in the years to come, but we believe that special emphasis must be placed now on the structuring of the foundations of this multi-purpose port. HIP, unlike any other port in Sri Lanka, includes an industrial park, which we will be strongly strengthening in our marketing and brand positioning, to attract new investment to our park and other areas of Hambantota district. Our intention is to position not only HIP, but also southern Sri Lanka, as a location for light, multi-purpose and heavy industry investments. The added benefit for investors would be Hambantota Port, which we are positioning to be the gateway port to the hinterland.

According to HIPG, there is an urgent need to speed up the construction of these factories, as this would not only materialize the projects already signed on the ground, but also help create momentum for new investments in the industrial park. According to the Port Investment Services Division, this would act as a catalyst to attract new FDI to the country. In addition to the ongoing projects, the port has signed 40 sublease agreements for both the Hambantota maritime center and the industrial park. HIP Speed, which has the ability in its processes to help investors understand the local terrain and expedite set-up operations, will provide support in obtaining approvals and reducing red tape. The industrial park works in tandem with other operations in the port, including the establishment of a container yard, which would be vital for industries in terms of importing raw materials and exporting finished domestic products.

Projects currently under construction include the US$58 million state-of-the-art yacht building facility, by SeaHorse Yachts (Pvt) Ltd., which will complete land grading in April and begin construction by mid-2022. 15 million dollars plug and play park-in-park by Shenzhen Xinji Group, is currently at the foundation level. When completed, it will attract light industrialists and traders to settle in Sri Lanka with a view to discovering new markets in South Asia. Shandong Haohua Tire Co. Ltd’s US$300 million tire manufacturing plant has completed grading work and will begin construction between the second and third quarters of this year. The plant, which will be built in 2 phases, has an annual production commitment of 20,000 container units.

All 3 projects are expected to complete the construction of their factories within the project implementation period and HIP Speed ​​is acting as a primary factor in ensuring timeliness. The port operator, in collaboration with state organizations, provides all the necessary support to accelerate manufacturing projects and realize their investments, so that they can contribute to the country’s export economy, as soon as possible.

Hambantota International Port promotes its industrial park to various industries around the world with a view to creating an international community of investors. Currently, investors from Sri Lanka, the UK, Japan, China, Singapore and the Maldives have projects underway. The port is also paving the way for projects in different sectors such as warehousing and logistics, household appliances, energy and value-added services, according to HIP sources.