Category: Shipping and Transport

Dec 06, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka plans to rehabilitate a tsunami-hit coastal railway line at a cost of 167.4 million dollar using an Indian credit line, a minister said. The proposed project that extends the railway line beyond Matara, a town in the southern tip of the island, will be completed within three years, […]

Nov 27, 2007 (LBO) – Ceylon Shipping Corporation plans to buy two cargo ships using an Iranian credit line to be negotiated during Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse’s current visit there. The ships are required to keep the northern Jaffna peninsula supplied with essential goods as the land route is controlled by the Tamil Tigers. […]

Nov 26, 2007 (LBO) – Colombo port, Sri Lanka’s main harbour, plans to build a dedicated cargo village to cater to rapidly increasing volumes of containers, a senior port official said. “We’re running short of space,” declared Nihal Keppetipola, a master mariner who is now the additional managing director of the Sri Lanka Ports Authority […]

Nov 23, 2007 (LBO) – Maersk, the world’s biggest shipping line and Colombo port’s top customer, advised Sri Lanka to further liberalise the sector for the island to become a logistics hub. Maard said Colombo does have a great opportunity to become a strong logistics hub provided it acted fast to remove existing constraints. “Colombo […]

Nov 21, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka is in danger of losing an opportunity to emerge as a logistics hub for the south Asian region unless it acts to improve port efficiency, fast track infrastructure projects and cut red tape, officials said Wednesday. “Apart from peace, the most important requirement for Sri Lanka is logistics,” […]

Nov 20, 2007 (LBO) – A Sri Lanka government panel has decided to start negotiations with the front runner for a new container terminal in Colombo with a Port of Singapore Authority and Aitken Spence bid being hot favourites to win the deal, officials said. The cabinet appointed negotiating committee (CANC), which made its decision […]

Nov 18, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka would tighten environmental protection regulations next year with vehicle emissions being a key target of the authorities, officials said. Sri Lanka also started to heavily subsidize fuel from 2004 sending the wrong price signals to the economy. Earlier this week the government launched a vehicle emission testing program […]

Nov 15, 2007 (LBO) – The Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) is planning a multi-storied car park and special tariffs at the Colombo port to encourage vehicle transshipment from India, an official said.Transshipment of vehicles from India, which is positioning itself as a small-car making hub, has been growing through Colombo. “The Port of Colombo […]

Nov 15, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka Shipping has announced its tugs have won contracts to tow international rigs on lengthy voyages. One tug has been deployed in the Middle East while another is underway moving a rig from Kakinada in India to Singapore. “Sri Lanka Shipping Co. was contracted to tow the rig ‘Transocean […]

Nov 02, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s motor trade is lobbying the government to discourage used car imports and change import duty to make brand new vehicles more affordable. The Ceylon Motor Traders’ Association (CMTA) says the government has still not responded to repeated proposals to restructure vehicle tax regulations and introduce a method of […]

Oct 17, 2007 (LBO) – The Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) Wednesday dismissed conflicting claims by rival bidders for a new terminal contract, saying they were inaccurate as bids were still being evaluated. “No one can claim to be the highest bidder,” said Nalin Aponso, deputy chief manager for communication and PR at the SLPA. […]

Oct 15, 2007 (LBO) – Though 25,000 state workers are eligible to buy duty-slashed vehicles, less than half of those entitled have so far applied for a car, officials said.Long waiting lists at agents for popular brands as well as the high cost of new cars is said to be deterring public servants from cashing […]