Huichen will invest 28 million dollars in the zone in Mirigama, north of the capital Colombo, to improve infrastructure in the first phase over three years, investment promotion minister Anura Yapa told a news conference.

The company, a conglomerate that specialises in infrastructure development and does coal and iron ore mining, will also market the zone and attract Chinese investors.

Huichen president Huang Yu Ping said they had identified 29 Chinese firms, mostly in machinery manufacture, keen on investing in the zone.

Yapa said it was the first time the BOI was handing over part of its land for development by a foreign company.

The arrangement will give Chinese investors the confidence of working in a zone meant for them and managed by Chinese while reducing the BOI's burden, he said.

The BOI said the zone of 161 acres, meant mainly for light manufacturing, IT and business process outsourcing, will provide employment for skilled youth in the region.

Industries earmarked for the zone include manufacture of machinery and equipment, electric motorcycles, buses, ambulances and agricultural machinery, and light vehicle assembly.

Yapa said the advantage of the zone was that it is 40 kilometres from the island's international airport at Katunayake and 55 km from the main port in Colombo.

The Chinese firm will build roads, supermarkets, and offices for banks as well as hotels and restaurants. It will also provide worker housing within the zone.

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