27 December 2017 09:39 am
Sri Lanka has received the first payment for the lease of the Hmbantota port to a state-owned Chinese firm, the Central Bank said yesterday.
Accordingly, US $ 292.1 million has been credited to the US dollar account of the Government of Sri Lanka maintained at the Central Bank of
Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) leased out the Hambantota port to China Merchant Port Holdings (CMPort) for a 99-year period in exchange of US$ 1.1 billion this July.
The development of the Hambantota port also entails a 15, 000-acre industrial zone that will create business for the port.
All the proceeds of the port lease are expected to be received by mid next year.
Moody’s Investors Service in a recent report said the proceeds of the port lease will boost Sri Lanka’s foreign currency reserves by US $ 1 billion by mid 2018 to reach US $ 7.5 billion.