Category: Industry
SriLankan Airlines to trim Europe flights, focus on Asia, Middle East
Sept 29, 2012 (LBO) – State-run SriLankan airline will trim loss-making flights to recession-hit Europe and focus on profitable routes closer to home, top officials told shareholders, as the airline lost money for the fourth straight year. The emergence of citizen-owned budget airlines in particular had made travel cheaper to ordinary citizens starting from Europe […]
Sri Lanka post war growth potential draws AIA
Sept 28, 2012 (LBO) – Being well positioned to take advantage of Sri Lanka’s post war growth potential helped drive a 109 million US dollar acquisition of Aviva NDB Insurance (ANI) by American International Assurance group, officials said. “After 30 years of war and this is a new beginning for the country so we are […]
Sri Lanka gets ADB help to cut power system losses, start solar trials
Sept 27, 2012 (LBO) – Sri Lanka will get 130 million US dollars in Asian Development Bank financing to cut losses in the power grid, expand supply to former war zones and for pilot rooftop solar panel installations. The regional lender said the financing will help the government reach its target of cutting system losses […]
Sri Lanka Aviva Insurance unit sold to AIA group
Sept 27, 2012 (LBO) – Control of Sri Lanka’s Aviva NDB Insurance is being bought by AIA Group, for 109 million US dollars, with Aviva and with joint venture partner, Colombo based NDB group, exiting. Aviva said 58.44 percent of Aviva NDB Holdings Lanka (Private) Limited, an unlisted firm will be sold to American International […]
Project Launch
Sept 27, 2012 (LBO) – India’s Krrish group, which has interests in alcohol and real estate launched a 460 million US dollar mixed development in Sri Lanka’s capital Colombo and has started marketing apartments, officials said. Krrish chief executive R Guptha said the group said a marketing office has been set up to sell apartments. […]
Sri Lanka launches tourism think tank
Sept 26, 2012 (LBO) – Sri Lanka is set to launch its first tourism related think tank that will gather information, analyze data and offer expertise to both policy makers and the businesses community to better steer the island’s booming tourism industry. The Centre for Research and Sustainability Studies in Tourism (CRST) launched this week […]
Cricket: Sri Lanka water firm boils over stomach bug
COLOMBO, Sept 25, 2012 (AFP) – A local drinking water supplier strongly defended its product Tuesday even as World Twenty20 organisers jettisoned their bottled water after several players went down with stomach flu. LAUGFS Aqua System said they had asked the International Cricket Council (ICC) for samples of suspect bottles of water, but got no […]
Sri Lanka state-carrier bailed out with Rs15.4bn bond
Sept 25, 2012 (LBO) – State-run SriLankan Airlines has been bailed out with a 15. 4 billion rupee Treasury bond allowing the firm fill a gap in the balance sheet created by a record 17. 1 billion rupee loss in 2011. Sri Lankan Airlines at group level lost 17. 17 billion rupees in the year […]
Finance Debt
Sept 25, 2012 (LBO) – RAM Ratings has confirmed a ‘BBB-‘ long term and ‘P3’ short term rating of Sri Lanka’s Softlogic Finance PLC, with a stable outlook. Where SLF’s funding mix was previously dominated by borrowings, deposits now form the bulk, following a 195.42% y-o-y surge in deposits in FY Mar 2012. Its loan-todeposit […]
Ad Awards
Sept 24, 2012 (LBO) – Organizers of Sri Lanka’s ‘Effie Awards’ is seeking advertisements and other marketing communications works in mainstream or alternative media, paid or unpaid, for this year’s contest. Ben Lightfoot, chairman of the Singapore Effies Chapter for 2012 and chief exectvie of the McCann Group will be a resource available to participants. […]
Sri Lanka to connect former war zone to national power grid
Sept 21, 2012 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s state-run Ceylon Electricity Board will connect the northern Jaffna peninsula to the national power grid on September 25, with the commissioning of a power line to the north, officials said. Next year a high tension 132kVA transmission standard line from Kilonocchi to Chunnakham is to be commissioned along […]
Eating Out
Sept 21, 2012 (LBO) – Cargills (Ceylon) Plc said it had struck deal with US based TGI Friday’s Restaurant Inc, to operate a chain of franchise restaurants in Sri Lanka. Cargills said in a stock exchange filing that it was planning to open the first restaurant in the fourth quarter of the current financial year. […]